Posted on 12/18/2009 9:19:42 AM PST by My Favorite Headache
Earth's Polar Ice Sheets Vulnerable to Even Moderate Global Warming; New Orleans, Much of Southern Florida, Expected to Be Permanently Submerged
ScienceDaily (Dec. 18, 2009) — A new analysis of the geological record of the Earth's sea level, carried out by scientists at Princeton and Harvard universities and published in the Dec. 16 issue of Nature, employs a novel statistical approach that reveals the planet's polar ice sheets are vulnerable to large-scale melting even under moderate global warming scenarios. Such melting would lead to a large and relatively rapid rise in global sea level.
According to the analysis, an additional 2 degrees of global warming could commit the planet to 6 to 9 meters (20 to 30 feet) of long-term sea level rise. This rise would inundate low-lying coastal areas where hundreds of millions of people now reside. It would permanently submerge New Orleans and other parts of southern Louisiana, much of southern Florida and other parts of the U.S. East Coast, much of Bangladesh, and most of the Netherlands, unless unprecedented and expensive coastal protection were undertaken. And while the researchers' findings indicate that such a rise would likely take centuries to complete, if emissions of greenhouse gases are not abated, the planet could be committed during this century to a level of warming sufficient to trigger this outcome.
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
Hey, I just wish we had the prehistoric sea covering parts of Texas. It would be nice to be closer to the ocean.
Every time I see things like this I’m reminded of driving up through the mountains of Colorado and seeing the ancient LAKEBEDS up there - yes, that’s right, through the mountain PASSES - 1 mile + above current sea level...
How silly and stupid are people who expect to stop nature’s cycles to begin with, really? It is up to us to ADAPT to changing environments because nature isn’t going to adapt to US... In other words — PACK UP AND MOVE if you don’t want to swim... Sorry, but that’s the way of the world people.
I’m surprised we don’t have leftists screaming about what’s going to happen along the Mississippi, and the Great Lakes... Oh, silly me — we’re in flyover country and mostly Conservative, we don’t rate on their scale of importance do we???
< /Kanye Whine Voice> Liberals hate Mid-Westerners!!! < /Kanye Whine Voice Off >
EXACTLY!
Have them explain the “climate change” on Jupiter which according to the last I heard had no people or evil SUVs!
It’s why man invented boats, is it not? ;)
There’s really nothing to worry about. Giant fruit bats created by cell phone radiation will have carried off most of the population by then.
Same here — I’m in North Central Wisconsin... From what I’m told there was a pretty thick sheet of ice here, too — and all the way down into Illinois for that matter!
BS meter alert...shut down, abort, bullcrap nonsense!!!
Haven’t we been hearing this for years now?
In fact weren’t the oceans supposed to have risen by now? That’s what we’ve been hearing for a couple of decades.
Maybe the new “health care” law should contain free scuba training for everyone in the US.
Flooding Cleveland would just pollute the water.
WAIT!!!! Didn’t Obama say that if we voted for him this wouldn’t happen????
Kentucky
Bwaaaaahhhhh!!!!!!
There’s some pretty involved stuff behind my statement, for sure. But you must admit the Piri Reis map shows up the complete ignorance of man in terms of history and earth sciences.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.