The Unquiet Ice ~~ NEWEST Discussion Idea for IONS Community Groups as of June 19, 2008
Glaciologist and Scientific American author Robin E. Bell reports, "A giant floating ice shelf off the Antarctic Peninsula marks the end of a great flow of ice. The flow begins with snowfall in the continental interior, which compacts into ice and slowly makes its way to the edge of the continent and into the ocean. As climate change accelerates the breakup of ice shelves, it can speed the movement of the "upstream" ice across the land and into the sea.
"Abundant liquid water newly discovered underneath the world's great ice sheets could intensify the destablilizing effects of global warming on the sheets. Then, even without melting, the sheets may slide into the sea and raise sea level catastrophically."
Discussion questions for this article can be accessed at http://www.shiftinaction.com/node/3444.
