"Disturbing" discovery: Giant hole found under Antarctica glacier

CBS News ^ | January 31, 2019 | Sarah Lynch Baldwin

[EdnaMode]

Researchers say a massive cavity the size of two-thirds of Manhattan was found under a glacier in Antarctica. The pocket is a sign of "rapid decay" and just one of "several disturbing discoveries" made recently regarding the glacier, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory said in a news release Wednesday.

"[The size of] a cavity under a glacier plays an important role in melting," said Pietro Milillo of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "As more heat and water get under the glacier, it melts faster."

The growing cavity sits in West Antarctica at the bottom of Thwaites Glacier, which is about as big as Florida and contains enough ice to contribute more than 2 feet to sea level rise, NASA said. It is growing at an "explosive" rate that surprised researchers conducting a study the agency led on the glacier.

[waredbird]

But if you add that two feet to that caused by AGW then you would have, well, two feet.

[Scrambler Bob]

If they just discovered the cavity, how do they know it is growing at a rapid pace.
= = =

Well it was zero size (in their minds) before they discovered it.

So zero to any size is super-duper exponential growth rate.

[Intolerant in NJ]

The growing cavity sits in West Antarctica at the bottom of Thwaites Glacier, which is about as big as Florida and contains enough ice to contribute more than 2 feet to sea level rise, NASA said...which brings to mind an interesting program I saw on PBS this week - the skeleton of a young girl from 13000 years ago - found in a flooded cave on the Yucatan peninsula - turns out there are extensive cave formations in the limestone in that region which were high and dry during the ice age, when the girl died, and are now flooded because all that ice melted - and why did the ice melt back then, so long ago? - was it a man made calamity?......

[TheZMan]

Now, now. Don’t go applying logic to this.

[no-to-illegals]

What hole ??? What hole

[davius]

Crap. Now I need a new Fortress of Solitude.

[no-to-illegals]

Do you need a room ??

[Hot Tabasco]

which is about as big as Florida and contains enough ice to contribute more than 2 feet to sea level rise,

Considering that the oceans comprise 69% of the surface of the planet, that's one hell of a lot of ice.......

[Chickensoup]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_volcanoes_in_Antarctica

130 plus volcanos in Antarctica

[doorgunner69]

Anyone of those super scientists think to correlate the area with local faulting and volcanic activity?

[Fresh Wind]

"The findings highlight the need for detailed observations of Antarctic glaciers' undersides in calculating how fast global sea levels will rise in response to climate change," NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory said.

Ahhh, there it is, the sales pitch. Give us research money, or disaster will be right around the corner.

[PapaBear3625]

I guess it's disturbing because it indicates heat is coming from under the glacier.

West Antarctica has a lot of volcanic and geo-thermal activity.

Hot Springs tourist attraction in Antarctica.

[no-to-illegals]

No sea level rise occurs from melting ice. Myths are everywhere

[no-to-illegals]

Sea levels drop when ICE melts

[Viking2002]

Nice save. Great movie.

[Doogle]

Davos

[Carriage Hill]

Their “two feet” isn’t 2ft. It’s a drop in the bucket of the world’s oceans.

One glacier isn’t going to up anything 2ft, as glaciers have been melting/reforming for millions of years, and the seas’ rise isn’t BIGLY affected.

We’re heading into a cold age, anyway, due to almost zero sunspots, so I call BS on NASA’s left-wing morons.

[Secret Agent Man]

Its been reported a long time ago they have seen palm trees underneath the antarctic ice.

Its not surprising to me in the least.

[the_Watchman]

Sea levels drop when ICE melts

Not when the ice was sitting on top of a land mass. This is the case for much of Antarctica. The Arctic is made up primarily of floating ice.

[rktman]

Did the NOT see the sign? “NO GLACIER OR ICE ALLOWED IN THIS AREA!”