Glaciers in West Antarctica, as seen during NASA's Operation IceBridge research flight in the region on Oct. 29, 2014. (Source: NASA/Michael Studinger) | Udpate: I've been asking some scientists what they think about characterizing the climate as being in "crisis," as well as other issues I raise below. As they come in I'll tack them on to the bottom of the post. So make sure to scroll all the way down. | Earlier this year, new research offered strong evidence that melting of the massive West Antarctic Ice Sheet has passed the point of no return. If true, this means it is now in irreversible retreat and will "collapse," as scientists put it, over the course of 200 years, give or take. As the ice tumbled into the sea and melted, such a scenario would eventually raise sea level by 16 feet. That's enough to swamp coastal areas where many tens of millions of people live worldwide. Luckily, however, the time frame is long — if not from a geologic perspective, certainly from a societal one. This week new research has suggested that the melt rate of glaciers in West Antarctica has tripled during the last decade. And another study attempts to show why: According to the research, over the past 40 years, a deep mass of water ringing Antarctica called the Circumpolar Deep Water appears to have warmed. The research also shows that warming CDW waters are intruding more and more to the undersides of glaciers that drain the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, causing them to melt from below, and speeding their passage toward the sea. It should be emphasized that the latter study isn't the final word on what's causing the melting. Some scientists take exception to its methodology. (For more on that, check out Carolyn Gramling's story in Science.)
The research from earlier in the year is featured in a story I wrote for Discover's Year in Science issue, which has just been published. All in all, it looks like a terrific issue. But I take exception to the headline and subhead that go with my story. The headline is "Climate in Crisis," and the subhead is "West Antarctic Ice Sheet Collapses."
