<
https://theconversation.com/heat-from-el-nino-can-warm-oceans-off-west-antarctica-and-melt-floating-ice-shelves-from-below-226233>
"As snow falls on Antarctica, layers build up and turn to ice. Over time, this
compressed snow has become a continent-sized glacier, or ice sheet. It’s
enormous – almost double the size of Australia and far larger than the
continental United States.
As the weight of ice builds up, the ice sheet begins to move towards the
oceans. When it reaches the sea, the ice floats. These floating extensions are
known as ice shelves. The largest is over 800 kilometres wide.
When the ocean water has a temperature close to 0°C, these ice shelves can
persist for a long time. But when temperatures rise, even a little, the ice
melts from below. Antarctic ice shelves are now losing an alarming 150 billion
tons of ice per year, adding more water to the ocean and accelerating global
sea level rise by 0.6 mm per year. Ice shelves in West Antarctica are
particularly prone to melting from the ocean, as many are close to water masses
above 0°C.
While the melting trend is clear and concerning, the amount can vary
substantially from year-to-year due to the impact of both natural climate
fluctuations and human-made climate change. To figure out what is going on and
to prepare for the future, we need to tease apart the different drivers –
especially El Niño-Southern Oscillation, the world’s largest year-to-year
natural climate driver.
Our new research explores how heat brought by El Niño can warm the ocean around
West Antarctica and increase melting of the ice shelves from below."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
