Rising sea levels and global warming

[Socksy Squirrel]

Socksy Squirrel:

I suppose it is only a minor point but the melting of large amounts of the ice sheet will affect ocean salinity.

That and the change in ocean pH due to added carbon dioxide may change ocean chemistry beyond the tolerance of some species.

Oh dear,

Time to come out of the closet.

I don't have to cheat, before I became a computer squirrel I picked up a degree or so in chemistry.

Even scientists are allowed to be ironic, see 'minor point' above

[Leon Roskilly]

It's the middle of Summer in Australia - Hot & Dry?

 

"Melbourne recorded its heaviest rainfall since records began in 1856, causing flights to be diverted and stretching emergency service volunteers, who receivede more than 2500 calls.

 

The road into Melbourne Airport was flooded and flights were diverted. Trains and trams across Melbourne were trapped at stations and in depots and police urged Melburnians to stay away from the city if possible.

 

Thousands of homes in Sydney and parts of NSW and south-east Queensland were left without power.

 

Heavy rain and large hail stones pummelled parts of Sydney and the Central Coast, causing flooding, while winds of more than 90 kph brought down trees and power lines and tore roofs off buildings.

 

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Ward Rooney said the weather was among the most extraordinary he had witnessed."

 

 

"The ferry, which had 628 passengers aboard, left Melbourne at 9.50pm (AEDT) yesterday but turned back at 3.30am after 20 metre waves smashed windows on its upper decks.

 

Judy Archer, from Melbourne, said the voyage had been terrifying.

"The waves were just enormous, just enormous. I've never seen anything like it and I was on the bunk and I could feel my body sort of lifting up in the air and crash down again," Ms Archer told reporters."

 

 

Plenty more at:

 

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Deadly...7228799831.html

 

Tight Lines - leon

 

[ 03. February 2005, 01:23 PM: Message edited by: Leon Roskilly ]

[Leon Roskilly]

"Vast ice blocks are slowly collapsing into the sea off Antarctica, increasing the threat from the rising level of the world's oceans, British scientists said yesterday."

 

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml.../02/ixhome.html

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Huge_Vitae]

Jaffa:

Nice summary Hugh, cheating or not !

 

Has Matt spoken to you about the theory where increased ice melt and precipitation in the arctic slows or stops the sinking of the cold dense water that drives the worlds ocean circulation?

 

Just wondered if this is still seen as a distinct possibility?

Bit too complex to summarize without some getting the wrong end of the stick.

 

read from page 6

 

You will see that this paper/theory was written before "The Day After Tomorrow" proved it to be FACT

[Huge_Vitae]

Southampton also assisted in the biggest research study ever undertaken inb the Oceans re circulation and salinity.

 

You can read about it....

 

here

 

But it is an 18Mb D/L and a bit much for my tin can and string connection to BT

[Jaffa]

Cheers Hugh ! Not that Southamptons research will compare with the "real" facts . Never seen that film though must have a look sometime. The bit where Americans seek refuge in Mexico sounds funny if nothing else

[gareths]

Chem A lvl student...

There is a theory that if more ice melts, the water level will rise, and therefore can stall the Gulf Stream which warms Britain. So here in Scotland we would get 9 months of snow a year.

There is also huge amounts of methane at the bottom of the ocean, but because it is so cold, it is not able to escape, now if temperatures rose by just a couple degrees the amount of methane would be greater than the amount of "farts" by all people in history of mankind. But this is thought maybe to occur in 2200, so we will all be dead thankfully. -- Now how often do you hear someone say that ?

[spanner]

methane hydrates.....and it gets better.....

 

Ocassionally a large one them goes off on the continetal slope off the East coast US of A, triggering an underwater landslide, which in turn causes a ripple to track across the atlantic and 8hrs later, splat, tsunami on our west coast

 

There hasn't been one for a while, in fact its overdue, and warming just makes it more likely

[Ian Burrett]

Haven't they discovered that the elledged Bermuda triangle disasters are caused by Methane gas escaping in huge bubbles; the ships fall through the bubble and get swamped.

[Jim Roper]

So is sea ice frozen fresh water or frozen sea water?

The next time the sea freezes down here, I will taste it.

Water(Fresh) reaches its maximum density at 34F. As it cools to that temperature it sinks through the warmer layers.

It then floats to the surface to form ice.

Can't yet find the diagam to post.