NYT Report Antarctica Melting From Climate Change
A new report by the New York Times casts a troubling light on effects of climate change in Antarctica as the southern hemisphere's ice cap appears to be in "the early stages of an unstoppable disintegration."
The three-part, interactive feature follows a group of Times reporters as they flew across Antarctica in a cargo plane. Armed with scientific instruments and a team from Columbia University, the crew put together a comprehensive look at how the southern ice cap is doing. In short: not well.
The report's main concern rests in rising global temperatures, which in turn would melt more of the stored ice on the planet's ice caps and raise sea levels for the entire world. Whereas as recently as four years ago, scientists once believed that it would take centuries for sea level to rise by 6 feet or more, if the current rate of climate change holds true, now scientists believe that Earth might get to that point by the end of this century.
Of course, this worst-case scenario - wherein low-lying cities like New York City, Miami, Shanghai, and Amsterdam give way for the water - isn't a sure thing for the future. Climate change researcher Robert M. DeConto of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, who worked on a paper that showed just how unstable Antarctica was, shared his thoughts on the climate change science:
We could be decades too fast, or decades too slow. There are still some really big question marks about the trajectory of future climate around Antarctica.
The specific risk with Antarctica is that much of its icy terrain is at around sea level. That means that rises in ocean temperature are felt more keenly there, despite the overall chilly atmosphere.
The Times report cautions that a full meltdown of Antarctica's ice could lead to a 160-foot rise in sea level - a catastrophe no matter how fast it happens. And as climate change continues to be denied, downplayed, or ignored by governments worldwide, the planet's only getting closer to this dystopian water world future.
Read the whole New York Times report here.
Follow Lilian on Twitter.
You Might Also Like
