Scientists say Antarctic climate evidence too strong to ignore
February 9, 2009(PhysOrg.com) -- More than 50 top international polar scientists will meet at Victoria University of Wellington this week to discuss their cutting-edge climate change research.
The focus will be establishing models that explain how Antarctica’s ice sheets have behaved in Earth’s recent past and explore how they may change in the future.
For several years, scientists from Italy, Germany, New Zealand and the United States have been studying a 1300 metre-long rock core recovered by the multinational ANDRILL (ANtarctic geological DRILLing) programme from beneath the Ross Ice Shelf, in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica.
The core was recovered in 2006 by a team of drillers and engineers from Antarctica New Zealand, who drilled through the ice to a record-setting depth.
The rock core contains valuable evidence of how Antarctica’s ice sheets and climate have changed over time and scientists use this information to learn what is likely to happen to Antarctica’s ice masses in the future and determine how these changes might affect the world’s climate and sea level.
Professor Tim Naish, Director of Victoria’s Antarctic Research Centre, and Professor Ross Powell from Northern Illinois University in the United States are Co-Chief Scientists of the collaborative research project.
Professor Naish says the workshop from 10 to 13 February is the culmination of many years of intensive work and new discoveries by a huge team of scientists, engineers, drillers, and educators.
He says Antarctica’s ice sheets have grown and collapsed at least 40 times over the past five million years.
“Much of our research has focused on the time interval from three to five million years ago. This period in Earth’s history is extremely relevant as it represents a global climate analogue to that projected for our very near future.”
“So far results from our studies on this extraordinary archive of Antarctica’s environmental history are providing critical new insights into past changes in Antarctica’s most vulnerable element: the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. If this ice mass were to melt, global sea-level would rise up to 5 metres - our world would be a very different place.”
Dr Richard Levy of GNS Science, Project Staff Scientist and workshop convenor says the workshop provides a rare opportunity for us to review all aspects of research carried out during the project - work by some of the world’s best polar earth scientists.
“This is a chance to combine our findings and take a huge step forward in our understanding of the Antarctic ice sheet’s response to global climate change.”
Scientists will spend the four days sharing results and debating models and interpretations. A key aim is to establish a strategy to deliver key results to the broader scientific community, general public, and policy makers.
Provided by Victoria University
Nov 05, 2009 |
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I'm genuinely interested to see what their research has found, but what's up with the title of the article?
And, over 50 million years ago there were no ice sheets on Antarctica. Antarctica was once a forested land before ocean currents changed due to continental drift.
120,000 years ago, sea level was 6 meters higher than present--and there were no massive CO2 emissions caused by man way back when.
And 4 days isn't long enough to do anything substantial.
Climate changes Len, and as so far, it's been natural every time.
The poles were not always cold. We didn't always have polar ice, or sea ice for that matter and this is during periods of far lower and far higher ghg content. Now it's the AGW proponent's turn to put up some facts and support their arguments with more than an "I told you it is so it is" argument.
I stated what I did and stated about the general period, which is when it was in its current position. An underwater landbridge connecting Antarctica and South America broke just over 50 million years ago, causing the ocean current to circulate around Antartica and plunging it into a perpetual winter wasteland. That is my point. Antartica was a forested land 55 million years ago in its current position at the Southern pole.
On the rest, Velanarris is correct.