World’s largest ice shelf melting rapidly due to solar heating of ocean surface

Why in news?
  • Antarctica’s Ross Ice Shelf, the world's largest ice shelf roughly the size of France, is melting rapidly.
  • The melting ice shelf has led to global sea-level rise of around 13.8 millimeters over the last 40 years.
More in news
  • Concerns expressed in the study:
    (1) Scientists has found out that this ice shelf is melting 10 times faster than the overall average, due to solar heating of the surrounding ocean surface.
    (2) Study found that solar heating of the surrounding ocean surface spurred the rate at which the ice is melting.
    (3) The team collected data over four years from an advanced oceanographic instrument installed under the ice shelf.
    (4) Team measured temperature, salinity, melt rates and ocean currents in the cavity under the ice using instruments deployed through a 260-meter deep borehole.
  • Contradictions with previous belief:
    (1) Earlier, scientists believed that heat radiating to the bottom melted the underside of the shelf, while the ocean surface cooled down quickly.
    (2) However, the latest findings show that heat in the ocean surface plays a crucial role.
  • What is alarming?
    (1) Scientists suggest that climate change will only further the rate at which ice melts in the future.
    (2) Antarctica comprises 90 per cent of the world’s ice.
    (3) Hence, what happens to its ice and snow is a matter of serious concern.
    (4) If this situation continues, sea-levels would rise up to 60 meters by 2050 and the ocean would engulf coastal cities across the globe.
Source
The hindu




Posted by Jawwad Kazi on 6th May 2019