Ancient Ice Melt Unearthed in Antarctic Mud: 20-Meter Sea Level Rise, Five Million Years Ago

Science Daily ^ | July 21, 2013 | Colin Smith

[Ben Mugged]

Global warming five million years ago may have caused parts of Antarctica's large ice sheets to melt and sea levels to rise by approximately 20 metres, scientists report today in the journal Nature Geoscience.

The researchers, from Imperial College London, and their academic partners studied mud samples to learn about ancient melting of the East Antarctic ice sheet. They discovered that melting took place repeatedly between five and three million years ago, during a geological period called Pliocene Epoch, which may have caused sea levels to rise approximately ten metres.

[Ben Mugged]

Of course the use of coal caused this Global Warming......

[Abathar]

Any time they use 3 to 5 million years and “could have” I just assume they are pulling most of it out of their butts.

[Raycpa]

Obama fixed this problem years ago.

[mdittmar]

The academics suggest that the melting of the ice sheet may have been caused in part by the fact that some of it rests in basins below sea level. This puts the ice in direct contact with seawater and when the ocean warms, as it did during the Pliocene, the ice sheet becomes vulnerable to melting.

Time to ban oceans!

[phormer phrog phlyer]

Don’t leave out SUVs.

[KosmicKitty]

Damned dinosaurs and their SUV’s

If they’d only listened to the experts, it never would have happened!

[Steely Tom]

...20-Meter Sea Level Rise, Five Million Years Ago

Interestingly, Ford was reaching peak production on its last generation of muscle cars almost exactly five million years ago.

Coincidence? I think NOT.

[shadeaud]

ZIMMERMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[palmer]

Pliocene

The warmth in the Pliocene was maintained by ocean currents through the open Isthmus of Panama. Since that closure we have effectively been in a state of near-permanent glaciation. We should be glad if our little reprieve continues.

[Gamecock]

Nah... It’s all because George Zimmerman is a white Hispanic.

[Dallas59]

[Explorer89]

Catastrophism ping.

[Nateman]

Why would they have to go all the way to Antarctica to prove something that happened worldwide? The evidence should be all over the Earth.

[PghBaldy]

It would be preserved better in Antarctica. Everywhere else, weather & other things intrude.

[Regulator]

Aw, c'mon, this is well known...

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Explorer89. This is very interesting, because Antarctica was (based on the fossil record) ice-free 3 million years ago.

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[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Explorer89.

[tet68]

So, five million years ago the sea level rose, and
after that it sank. I see.

[Delta 21]

This is because the Pliocene Epoch had carbon dioxide concentrations similar to now and global temperatures comparable to those predicted for the end of this century.

There is your Bull$hit alert !

This is exactly the kind of logic that has put Detroit into bankruptcy.

What if your hypothesis that you concluded from what you said you previously had know IS WRONG?

[dfwgator]

Darned SUVs.