Incredible facts
The biggest problem related to the effects of global warming is the melting of glaciers, which can lead to the flooding of coastal settlements. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that millions of people depend on glacier water.
Scientists are still trying to determine how, when and where global warming will affect glaciers. Two recent studies provide answers to these questions, and they are far from comforting. According to scientists, global warming will melt three-quarters of Alpine glaciers by 2100, and the sea level will rise by 4 meters by 3000 due to the melting of West Antarctic ice sheet. In addition, by 2100, the volume of mountain glaciers and ice caps will decrease by 15-27 percent.
In some regions, the impact of global warming will be stronger due to the height of the glaciers and the terrain. New Zealand, for example, would lose 72 per cent of its glaciers, while the European Alps would lose about 75 per cent. It should be noted that in Greenland and the highlands of Asia, these figures will be much lower: 8 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively. The water level will rise by an average of 12 centimeters by 2100.
These conclusions were made by geophysicists Valentina Radic and Regine Hock from the University of Alaska, calculating possible options using a computer model compiled based on the results observations of 300 glaciers from 1961 to 2004. They were based on the statement that in the 21st century, due to greenhouse gases, the average air temperature will increase by 2.8 degrees Celsius. The model was then applied to 19 regions.
The second scenario
The second study focuses on the inertial effects of global warming. Carbon molecules released by fossil fuels and resulting from deforestation can stay in the atmosphere for centuries before affecting temperature. Even if humanity can stop these emissions before 2100, the warming process will continue. This study is based on the likelihood of an increase in greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, and, as a result, an increase in temperature by 3.4 degrees Celsius.
An increase in the temperature of the middle layers of ocean water off the southern coasts of Australia and Africa could cause the West Antarctic ice sheet to melt by 3000. The inertia of ocean currents heading to the South Atlantic means that the oceans are only now starting to warm due to carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere in the past century. According to Shawn Marshall of the University of Calgary, Canada, the simulations show that warming will continue for another 1,000 years.