New Information about the Greenland Glaciers
A group of scientists traveled to Greenland in order to asses the situation of the glaciers, which seems to get worse with each passing day. They flew over the glaciers, and they deployed a device into the waters in order to calculate the temperature.
The device reached the bottom of the water, and it indicated a temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit, which caused reasons for concern. The temperature was too high, and as a result the glaciers could melt because of it. Fiammetta Straneo, one of the scientists involved in the project, stated that these were the highest temperatures encountered in the area so far. The subject of global warming is a highly debated one, and the whole world is wondering when will the glaciers completely melt, and if can anything be done about it.
The scientists have believed for a very long time now that the glaciers will be gone in thousands of years, and that the water levels will rise with a few centimeters in this century. It seems that they have changed their minds, as the latest discoveries proved something else. Based on the new discoveries, the researchers have estimated that the global waters will rise with three feet by 2100, and that is a huge reason for concern. If such a thing would happen, then many of the coastal regions of the world will be flooded. The researches have also revealed the fact that the water levels might rise with 6 feet in this century, which would mean that millions of people from Asia and from America would be affected. The scientists have stated that an increase of 3 feet would make certain lands from different regions of the world inhabitable, and that such a thing might be avoided with any costs necessary.
They stated that the beaches would be eroded because of it, that the islands would disappear, and that the fresh water would be contaminated by the salty one. They have stated that in the United States of America, the Gulf Coast and the East Coast would be heavily affected by the rise of the waters. Brooklyn and Queens would often be flooded, and more than 15 percent of Miami might become inhabitable. On a global level, London, Bangkok, Venice, Cairo, and many other cities would share the same fate. The scientists have admitted that their predictions might be wrong, and that we are not in the dangers they have predicted we would be. They stated that they do not have too much knowledge when it comes to the changes which occur in the world’s land ice. However, they have stated that they could have underestimated the predictions as well, and that the situation might be worse than they predicted.
John A. Church, an Australian scientist who is a leading expert on sea levels, stated that the scientists should start working on plans which might increase the security of the coastal cities, as they will be the ones affected by the possible floods. He stated that people should realize that not all the areas will be protected, and that some of them will have to be abandoned. The situation regarding the rising sea-levels has been debated for a very long time now. Numerous predictions have been made about it, some of them assuring us that nothing bad will happen, others stating that the future will be very grim. There are many people who do not believe that the humans are responsible for the changes which occur in the nature; or at least they do not have such a high impact as some say. These people believe that the changes which occur in the nature, as caused by the natural elements, and not by the greenhouse gas emissions.
There are many politicians who share the same views, and as a result many of the prepositions which have been made regarding certain attempts of stopping the greenhouse gas emissions have not been approved. Most of the climate scientologists believe that the greenhouse gas emissions are responsible for some of the changes which occur worldwide. They believe that the regulations should be much stricter when it comes to the greenhouse gas emissions, because otherwise the situation will be much worse in the future. There are other sings that the global temperatures have been on a constant rise, besides the melting of the ice. For example the land and sea temperatures have been on the rise as well. Floods, droughts, and heat waves have become more and more frequent, and all of these changes have been considered to be a result of the global warming.
The rise of the sea could be one of the most surprising effects of the global warming. There are many rich countries that are in the risk of being flooded if such a thing would happen, yet none of them have made any attempts in order to stop this from happening. As a result the scientists and the researchers do not have too much experience in the domain. This is the first time when they were able to measure the temperatures of the waters located around the glaciers, and as a result they do not have any previous data to which they would be able to compare the results. The science of the global warming is in an infant state, and it needs to grow up very fast. There are many satellites which should have been replaced in order for the scientists to be able to analyze the situation, but that did not happen. That information is essential, but the scientists do not have access to it.
Morgan Goransson was the pilot of the helicopter which carried the scientists in the area. He stated that the flight was very difficult, as he needed to make sure that the helicopter is low enough, and that it would not touch any of the glaciers. It was risky, but the risk was necessary, as without that information, researches in the domain would not be possible. Dr. Straneo, of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, and Dr. Hamilton, of the University of Maine, belong to a larger team which went into Greenland each summer in order to analyze the situation. The situation is just as risky for them, as they have to lean from the helicopter while it is in flight, and they have to make sure that they do not hit any icebergs with their boats. The researchers were convinced that the temperature which they collected weeks ago would be higher than in the past.
The temperature from the bottom of the waters is very high, and as a result the glaciers might melt from the bottom, being able to move freely and to dump more waters into the oceans. The flow rate of many of the glaciers from the world has been on a rise since the 1990s, and it is very likely that it will be on the rise in the future periods as well. Meredith Nettles and Göran Ekström, who are seismologists at the Columbia University, have stated that when the ice is dumped into the sea, an earthquake which can be detected from very long distances occurs. This means that the quantities of ice which are poured into the sea are very large. They have analyzed these earthquakes starting with the 1990s, and they have discovered that their intensity is higher each and every time.
The previous measurements have revealed the fact that Greenland recovered the ice it lost through the melting from the summer, through the snowfalls which occurred in the winter. This is no longer the case, because as the global temperatures have increased, the snowfall has been drastically reduced. The scientists have not officially stated that the humans are responsible for the melting of the glaciers, as a similar situation occurred in the 1920s and in the 1930s, when many of the glaciers melted. John R. Christy, is a climatologist at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, who stated that the changes are a result of the natural variability, and not of the actions taken by the people. He is convinced that the situation is not as bad as some of his fellow scientists have predicted. He said that in order for the predictions to come true, a large majority of the glaciers from Greenland should melt very fast, and that it impossible.
Without a doubt, the situation has changed in the area in comparison to the previous years. For example they have observed that because of the melting, a certain are is now exposed to the sun, and as a result, it will melt as well. Such occurrences are common in Greenland, and it is believed that they will happen until all the ice will be melted. On the other hand, there were certain regions where the ice was so thick, that the scientists could not go with the boat there. They stated that they need to be flexible, and to be prepared for all sorts of scenarios. They dropped a floating buoy into the water which contained numerous instruments that would analyze the situation in the following year. The scientists have stated that the main reason why it is believed that the overall water levels will rise in the future is because that happened in the past as well.
In fact, the sea levels have modified with hundreds of feet since our planet was first formed, but what many do not know, is that the shorelines have moved as well. The shorelines are not immobile as some would believe, but they are mobile. The main difference is that back then when all these changes occurred, the people did not stay in single place. They often migrated, and as a result they were not too affected by the changes. It has been estimated that by 2050, the planet will be inhabited by 9 billion people, and as you can imagine, it would be impossible for all of them to move from area to area, in order to avoid the floods. There are many scientists who seem to be 100 percent convinced that the ice will eventually completely melt. However, they hope that it will not melt too fast, because if it would, then the people will not be prepared for it.
Researchers have proven the fact that the water levels have remained the same for thousands of years, until the 19th century when people started using the coal and the oil, when the industrial revolution took place. Since then the sea levels have risen with eight inches on average, and even if that does not sound too much, the damage done to the shorelines can be very high. Billions of dollars have been spent by the government of various countries in order to stop the damage done to the shores. They have pumped sand into the shorelines, but it seems that their attempts have not been successful. The scientists have tried to predict if the levels will remain the same in this century or if they increase. Some of them said that they will not change, whereas some stated that they will increase with at least 7 inches in the years to follow. The problem is that they do not have too much knowledge in the domain, so their predictions might have been wrong.
The evidences collected from the footage taken with the aid of the satellites seem to indicate that the water levels will rise with one foot this century. There are various elements which should be taken in consideration, such as the fact that because of the rise of the temperatures, the waters will expand without taking in consideration the melting of the glaciers. The scientists have developed various formulas which should be able to predict the rise of the waters, but it seems that all of them have reached the same conclusion as the one suggested by the scientists, that the waters might increase between a few inches and a few feet in the next 100 years. The scientists have been praised for what they are doing, but there are many who have stated that their efforts might be futile, as they might not changed the situation too much. The threat is there, and since we do not have the means of stopping it at the moment, we can only hope and wait. Many scientists are afraid that the situation of the greenhouse gas emissions will not be solved too soon, and when it might be solved, it might be too late.
