Largest Arctic ice shelf breaks up: report - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Tandem · 09-22-2003, 05:22 PM

Scientists in the United States and Canada say the largest ice shelf in the Arctic, a solid feature for 3,000 years, has broken up.

They said the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf, on the north coast of Ellesmere Island in Canada's Nunavut territory, broke into two main parts themselves cut through with fissures.

The researchers report a freshwater lake drains into the sea.

Large ice islands also calved off from the shelf and some are large enough to be dangerous to shipping and to drilling platforms in the Beaufort Sea.

They say local warming of the climate is to blame, adding that they did not have the evidence needed to link the melting ice to the steady, planet-wide climate change known as global warming.

Warwick Vincent and Derek Mueller of Laval University in Quebec City, Canada, and Martin Jeffries of the University of Alaska Fairbanks lived at the site, flew over it and used radar satellite imaging for their study.

Only 100 years ago the whole northern coast of Ellesmere Island, which is the northernmost land mass of North America, was edged by a continuous ice shelf.

The researchers say about 90 per cent of it is now gone.

A similar trend in the Antarctic has caused the break-up of huge ice shelves there.

"There's a regional trend in warming that cycles back 150 years," Dr Mueller said.

"I am not comfortable linking it to global warming ... it is difficult to tease out what is due to global warming and what is due to regional warming."

Climate change has affected ocean temperature, salinity and flow patterns, which also influence the break-up of ice shelves in the Antarctic.

Warmer temperatures weaken the ice, leaving it vulnerable to changed currents and other forces.

"It's not just as simple as it gets x degrees warmer and the ice melts this much," Mueller said.

--Reuters

David2000 · 09-22-2003, 05:51 PM

Yeah, but I still doubt global warming is a human thing--and if it is, we were naturally here to begin with! I don't think that just cause we're conscious of our actions means that we have to be ultra careful about everythnig we do...

However, there is a lot of shit that we're doing right now that we could do a lot better--SUV's blow, coal power blows, cutting down the rainforest blows, etc etc etc. we should be more conscious about the EFFECTS of our actions, but let's not shit on ourselves just cause we have the brains to do so.

fallen_angel · 09-22-2003, 06:11 PM

One thing to think about when you say that we should be concious of our actions, you should say third world countries and those that have no pollution laws. Most of the worlds pollution stems from other countries outside the u.s. and europe. global warming is from what i understood a natural trend, just like the cylce that is happening in kansas. we are actually having more typical weather for kansas this year than in the last few decades. that is because everything has cycles. the dust bowl being one and now we are having more variable weather, in a few years we will be back to drought and thats the circle of life. also, most people would blame the fact that ozone depletions in the poles are to blame for global warming, but if you look at an overview of the ozone layers areound the world you would see that the ozone is thickest around areas where industries are located. Like above deleware and las angelas san diego and so on. . .
The artic and antarctic are just going through natural cycles, and whose to say they are not natural cycles. we have no documented proof that changes like these have not occured over and over again over the centuries. . . the ice sheets that may have broken off earlier could be long gone and melted. . .
ok just another thought we are only now ending an ice age right? well then that kinda proves that the climate global wide changes quite drastically. anyways i think i went off on a few to many tangents and ill let who ever actually took the time to read this (if anyone ever really does) get on their way. Thank you for listening to my random thought patterns.

09-22-2003, 05:22 PM	#1 (permalink)
Tandem Insane Location: Brisbane, Australia	Largest Arctic ice shelf breaks up: report Scientists in the United States and Canada say the largest ice shelf in the Arctic, a solid feature for 3,000 years, has broken up. They said the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf, on the north coast of Ellesmere Island in Canada's Nunavut territory, broke into two main parts themselves cut through with fissures. The researchers report a freshwater lake drains into the sea. Large ice islands also calved off from the shelf and some are large enough to be dangerous to shipping and to drilling platforms in the Beaufort Sea. They say local warming of the climate is to blame, adding that they did not have the evidence needed to link the melting ice to the steady, planet-wide climate change known as global warming. Warwick Vincent and Derek Mueller of Laval University in Quebec City, Canada, and Martin Jeffries of the University of Alaska Fairbanks lived at the site, flew over it and used radar satellite imaging for their study. Only 100 years ago the whole northern coast of Ellesmere Island, which is the northernmost land mass of North America, was edged by a continuous ice shelf. The researchers say about 90 per cent of it is now gone. A similar trend in the Antarctic has caused the break-up of huge ice shelves there. "There's a regional trend in warming that cycles back 150 years," Dr Mueller said. "I am not comfortable linking it to global warming ... it is difficult to tease out what is due to global warming and what is due to regional warming." Climate change has affected ocean temperature, salinity and flow patterns, which also influence the break-up of ice shelves in the Antarctic. Warmer temperatures weaken the ice, leaving it vulnerable to changed currents and other forces. "It's not just as simple as it gets x degrees warmer and the ice melts this much," Mueller said. --Reuters

09-22-2003, 05:51 PM	#2 (permalink)
David2000 Tilted Location: New Haven, CT	Yeah, but I still doubt global warming is a human thing--and if it is, we were naturally here to begin with! I don't think that just cause we're conscious of our actions means that we have to be ultra careful about everythnig we do... However, there is a lot of shit that we're doing right now that we could do a lot better--SUV's blow, coal power blows, cutting down the rainforest blows, etc etc etc. we should be more conscious about the EFFECTS of our actions, but let's not shit on ourselves just cause we have the brains to do so. __________________ However livin' better now, Gucci sweater now..

09-22-2003, 06:11 PM	#3 (permalink)
fallen_angel Psycho Location: Somewhere between the Havens and the Earth	One thing to think about when you say that we should be concious of our actions, you should say third world countries and those that have no pollution laws. Most of the worlds pollution stems from other countries outside the u.s. and europe. global warming is from what i understood a natural trend, just like the cylce that is happening in kansas. we are actually having more typical weather for kansas this year than in the last few decades. that is because everything has cycles. the dust bowl being one and now we are having more variable weather, in a few years we will be back to drought and thats the circle of life. also, most people would blame the fact that ozone depletions in the poles are to blame for global warming, but if you look at an overview of the ozone layers areound the world you would see that the ozone is thickest around areas where industries are located. Like above deleware and las angelas san diego and so on. . . The artic and antarctic are just going through natural cycles, and whose to say they are not natural cycles. we have no documented proof that changes like these have not occured over and over again over the centuries. . . the ice sheets that may have broken off earlier could be long gone and melted. . . ok just another thought we are only now ending an ice age right? well then that kinda proves that the climate global wide changes quite drastically. anyways i think i went off on a few to many tangents and ill let who ever actually took the time to read this (if anyone ever really does) get on their way. Thank you for listening to my random thought patterns. __________________ from the Havens I have fallen. . . to the earth as a mangled form. . . writhing in pain, my wings torn and bloodied. . . I have one purpose, only one goal. . . to find you and love you, for I am your. . . fallen angel