Antarcic Glacier Melting Faster Than Predicted (image from Devil.Bunny on Flickr)

A scary new story published by the BBC reveals the results of scientific study concerning our planet’s ice caps.  An Antarctic glacier is melting faster than a decade ago – 4 times more quickly – to be precise.  Measurements of the Pine Island glacier show that ice surface is sinking at an astounding rate of 16 meters per year.  In the past 15 years, the glacier has thinned by up to 90 meters, which has scientists very concerned about the implications of sea level rise.

The research has been published in Geophysical Research letters.  Some very serious predictions were noted in the BBC article:

Calculations based on the rate of melting 15 years ago had suggested the glacier would last for 600 years. But the new data points to a lifespan for the vast ice stream of only another 100 years.

So, how much longer are we going to deny the fact of global climate change?

Global Climate Change is resulting in melting glaciers (image from apasp on Flickr)

Professor Andrew Shepherd of Leeds University, one of the authors of the Antarctic glacier melting study, predicts that the global sea levels will rise about 3 cm as a result of melting from the center of the Pine Island glacier.  He spoke with BBC News:

“But the ice trapped behind it is about 20-30cm of sea level rise and as soon as we destabilise or remove the middle of the glacier we don’t know really know what’s going to happen to the ice behind it.”

“This is unprecedented in this area of Antarctica. We’ve known that it’s been out of balance for some time, but nothing in the natural world is lost at an accelerating exponential rate like this glacier.”

Dramatic changes are also raising scientific concerns on the opposite side of the planet, in the Arctic, as well.  Global climate change has impacted the amount of sea ice near Greenland and Canada.  Scientists have discovered large new cracks on the Petermann glacier, a huge piece of which could break off in the near future.

Professor Box told BBC News:

“The science community has been surprised by how sensitive these large glaciers are to climate warming. First it was the glaciers in south Greenland and now as we move further north in Greenland we find retreat at major glaciers. It’s like removing a cork from a bottle.”

You think renewable energy projects are expensive?  We cannot afford the luxury of continuing our approach to global climate change, as glaciers continue to disintegrate at unprecedented rates.  Every little bit helps.  Distributed generation projects can take 1-100 buildings off of CO2 emitting power, using renewable resources like solar and wind.  They’ll get approved and constructed more quickly than large power plants.

What are we waiting for?

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