Stronger Ocean Currents Contributing to Glacier Melt

Published by: The Claw on 27th Jun 2011 | View all blogs by The Claw
Stronger Ocean Currents Contributing to Glacier Melt

A new study published in the Nature Geoscience journal shows that stronger ocean currents are contributing to the melting of glaciers.  The study cites stronger currents below the Pine Glacier Ice Shelf in West Antarctica, which are increasing the pace at which the entire glacier is melting, the study said.  A growing cavity beneath the ice shelf is allowing more warm water to come into contact with larger and larger surface area, thus meting the ice quicker.

Melting glacier ice contributes to rising sea levels, a problem also impacted by global warming.  The Pine Glacier is currently sliding into the sea at a rate of about 2.5 miles a year, while the ice shelf is melting at about 80 cubic centimeters a year, 50 percent faster than the rate it was in the early 1990s.  Scientists acknowledge that global sea temperatures have risen over that time span, but explain that the increase has not been sufficient to account for the acceleration of glacier melt.

The Claw

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