West Antarctic ice sheet melting even faster than feared
One study concludes that climate-induced depletion of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet could cause sea levels to rise by as much as three meters by the year 2100.
The West Atlantic Ice Sheet is a freshwater reservoir with an area of around 200,000 square kilometers. Climate models show that the ice sheet can break up even with a relatively small increase in global temperature. If it dissolves completely, global sea levels could rise by three meters or more. Until now, however, researchers have assumed that these effects will not occur for hundreds or even thousands of years.
How the New York Times reports, however, this could happen much earlier: Researchers at a Studypublished in the renowned scientific journal Nature, concluded that the shield will degrade within a few decades - if greenhouse gas emissions continue as they are now.
Increase by one meter
According to the researchers, sea levels could rise by as much as one meter by the year 2100 - with catastrophic consequences. That's about twice as much as the UN's previous worst-case scenario indicates.
After that, according to climate calculations, things will get even worse: every 10 years, sea levels are expected to rise by around 30 cm until they are around 4 meters above today's level. Many coastal areas, low-lying countries and coastal cities would disappear into the sea as a result; including London, Venice, New York, Shanghai and Sydney.
