Sea level rise could be worse than anticipated

[dracodraconis]

Sea level rise could be worse than anticipated

A recent report states that should the antarctic shelf collapse, sea levels could rise by as much as 21 feet, rather than the 16.5 feet currently projected. The new study takes into account the rebound of the antarctic landmass and the effect on Earth's rotation, as well as changes in the Earth's gravitational profile. They don't however, anticipate this happening for several hundred years... unless things go downhill faster than expected.

Comments

[ancalagon-tb.livejournal.com]

There seems to be really a lot of dispute over the scale of this possible change, and I wonder if part of it is not a "definition" issue. This article is specific to the Western shelf, and not a "if all the ice on the continent melted, what would happen".

Should that doomsday scenario occur, the scale is much greater:

http://www.grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/?src=/climate/ipcc_tar/wg1/412.htm#tab113

I refer you to table 11.3 - adding up the Antarctic and Greenland yields 68 meters. I had calculated 75 meters previously, someone of an overestimate, but given my methods, reasonably close. Mind you, this table probably does not take in effect these peculiar gravitational effect into account.

[dracodraconis.livejournal.com]

Just based on historical evidence, the sea level rise in the Middle Pleistocene era was as much as 21 metres.

http://www.physorg.com/news153421329.html

[ancalagon-tb.livejournal.com]

It may be that the "doom scenario" actually never occurred before?

Anyway, once we pass a few feet, it becomes disastrous. And the poor will suffer horribly - because who's going to look after them?

[dracodraconis.livejournal.com]

We might want to consider moving to underwater or ocean-based cities, combined with ocean farming.