This is Eve and we just came across another piece of good news on the state of global warming in the form of an update on Thwaites Glacier.
Written by Thomas Neuburger.First appearance God’s Spy
Location of Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica (sauce)
The Thwaites Glacier is a mass of ice the size of Florida on the coast of west Antarctica. Known as the “Glacier of the End” Because that can wreak havoc on its own.
Jump to 2:29 minutes Visualize and see undercutting in action.
“How quickly that will happen is hotly debated,” the narrator says at 3:33. That was him in 2020, not so much now.
“It will take decades, not centuries.”
from CNN May 21 (via a great climate news aggregator, Collapse Chronicle):
The water would flow several miles beneath the “terminal glacier,” which could have a profound effect on sea level rise.
…Already responsible for 4% of global sea level rise, the Twites Glacier holds enough ice to raise sea levels by more than 2 feet. However, Twites Glacier also acts as a natural dam for surrounding glaciers in West Antarctica. scientists have estimated Its complete collapse could ultimately lead to a rise in sea levels of about 10 feet, which would be catastrophic for coastal communities around the world.
Numerous studies point to Thwaites’ immense vulnerability. Global warming caused by human burning of fossil fuels is Hanging “by its claws” According to a 2022 survey.
CNN has not linked to this study.Announcement from the University of California, Irvine hereThe paper itself here.
Lead author Eric Rignot said Quote “Predictions are going up…[collapse]will take decades, not centuries. Part of the answer also depends on whether the climate continues to warm.”
Needless to say, the weather is getting warmer and warmer. And don’t trust the word “a lot” – he’s trying not to scare you too much.
Our bet on the future
No one says this will happen soon. “Decades” is not yet next year. But global sea surface temperatures are setting new records, and the pace is accelerating.
As you can imagine, some things happen. scared This has led to further scientist (See also here and here)than Their lives depend on the rich class..
All of this will happen in a “decade”? By the mid-2050s, my money’ll be two or three.
Global sea level rise and sea level rise near you
But whatever the timescale for the complete collapse of the Thwaites Glacier, the change it would bring would be sudden and gradual, not smooth. If a chunk of ice the size of Florida wasn’t submerged and suddenly fell into the ocean, that alone would raise sea levels globally by as much as two feet.
And that increase will not be well distributed.For example, the sea level near New York is 1.5 times the global average:
When the fall of the Thwaites family comes, everything will change. And the subsequent collapse of West Antarctica will ice out the rest. The first one could happen in the next 20 years or so. Remember that everything is accelerating.
And secondly…well, given how scrambled the eggs will be by then, it might not matter when it comes at all.
solution
The solution, of course, is to act like this: “active” kind. situation Know this Much better than most people. That’s why it happened Get ready. We’ll check on that soon.
