Antarctica is a land of the extremes. As the coldest and driest continent on Earth, it has the highest average elevation. As the fifth largest continent in the world, Antarctica is most commonly known as the "South Pole". Ninety-eight percent of this landmass is covered by ice sheets to with an average depth of 1.25 miles has the coldest temperature on record. In recent decades the whale and seal population has begun to recover, but interest has grown in new resources, especially oil, minerals, fish, and tourism (Blanchfield). However, due to the raising CO2 levels in the atmosphere by human activity is causing the unfortunate melting of Antarctica.
In today's world everyone uses energy to travel, to power houses, and to power daily items.
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These emissions have caused the Earth's surface temperature to rise, and the oceans absorb about 80 percent of this additional heat. Therefore Woodard states, “...the glaciers in this area drain the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, a precariously balanced portion of the southern ice cap that contains enough ice to raise sea levels by 20 feet…”, which means higher temperatures caused by global warming have led to diminished snowfall due to later winters and earlier springs. This imbalance results in a significant change to ocean evaporation; inevitably, causing sea levels to rise.Rising seas will push hundreds of millions of people live in coastal areas to new areas leaving the grounds that will become progressively vulnerable to flooding. In relation to Hinrichsen by stating, “ In the United States, studies suggest that up to 43 percent of remaining coastal wetlands would be submerged, mostly along the Atlantic and Gulf coast”. Rising seas will push hundreds of millions of citizens that live in coastal areas to new areas leaving the grounds that will become progressively vulnerable to flooding.. Consequently do to soaring water quantity, there will be an increase flood threats everywhere near the coast line, prompting flash flooding during extreme natural disasters. This will cost millions more of taxpayers money to fix damages and destruction. Rivers and lakes exposed by saltwater will contaminate the freshwater , affecting runoff, drinking water, and triggering death to native freshwater fish. Not only can increasing water volume damage properties, it can also alter weather patterns. Increasing temperatures and melting ice in the Arctic regions are creating more snowfall in the autumn months at lower latitudes, which affects an atmospheric pattern that leads to colder winters. As stated by Hanses ”... increasing
Climate Change and Global Warming cause sea levels to rise. This increase in sea levels not only causes inundation of low lying and coastal areas but also irrevocable damage to coastal environments. Globally the ocean is predicted to rise nearly 140 cm on a global scale by the year 2100 (Cooper et al. 2013); therefore this has massive implications for countries all around the world with cities (settlements etc.) based near bodies of water. When compared to the last 80 years this is an acceleration of nearly twice the rate that ...
High carbon monoxide, ocean heating, glacial melt, acid rain, ocean acidification, and coral bleaching are just a small number of the adverse effects that we as humans are having on the planet. The earth’s waters are an excellent source to find out the adverse effects of climate change. The surface of the earth is covered in more water than land and knowing how our waters are affected is a key element to understanding the true dangers of climate change.
Climate change has had many impacts all over the world and evidence of it is very apparent. One example that climate change has impacted the earth is the rising sea levels. Since planet earth is slowly getting warmer by greenhouse gasses, the glaciers and ice sheets around the world are melting, which is adding more water to the oceans. Within the last century, the global water levels have risen by nearly 7 inches. In a quote from “A Student 's Guide” they say,
September Arctic sea ice is now declining at a rate of 13.2 percent per decade, relative to the 1981 to 2010 average. According to NASA, it states, ¨Carbon dioxide (CO2) is an important heat-trapping (greenhouse) gas, which is released through human activities such as deforestation and burning fossil fuels, as well as natural processes such as respiration and volcanic eruptions. Data from NASA's GRACE satellites show that the land ice sheets in both Antarctica (upper chart) and Greenland (lower) have been losing mass since 2002. Both ice sheets have seen an acceleration of ice mass loss since 2009. ¨ 3. The ice is melting a lot at a
People need energy, it’s a fact. We need it for our cars, for our televisions and for our iPods. We need it all the time, every day. The simple fact is though, we are running out. Carbon based fuels are being used at an alarming rate every day. And every day our demand increases as our society becomes more and more reliant on technology.
Based on Laurel Nesbit, a program assistant in the Office of Sustainability here at UF, our campus manages to utilize 470,000 Megawatts of energy annually. This figure is generated from all the energy-consuming gadgets that operate on our campus on a daily bases. These gadgets include computers that are left turned on over the night even they are not in use, copiers, and the fume hoods in our laboratories. Admittedly, the success and the health of wellbeing of the students is contingent upon some of these equipment. For instance, the laboratories need the fume hoods in order to keep the experimenters safe. Instead of casting these necessities away, we can develop alternatives which will be capable of generating energy in order to compensate for the electricity that we endlessly
Climate change can be seen as a change in the pattern of weather over time scales of decades or longer, relating to changes in oceans, land surfaces and ice sheets. Evidence has proven that the Antarctic continent is warming as a whole. Studies conducted by Antarctic researchers have found that a temperature increase of 1.3°C will threaten 40% of the total Emperor penguin population, along with 70% of the world’s total Adélie penguin population, largely as the result of diminishing sea ice. Predictions that have made is that at present rate, global temperatures will exceed 1.3°C of warming before mid-century with penguin scientists also predicting that climate change will push the Emperor population to near extinction within this century as the result of sea-ice
We depend on energy; nothing in our daily lives could be possible without it. Electricity primarily comes from burning fossil fuels or using nuclear reactors. But the plain truth is, we are running out of fossil fuels. Our known oil deposits will run out in approximately 35 years, and if we increase the use of natural gas and coal to make up for the energy loss, our natural gas will last for 45 years and coal deposits will deplete in 75 years.
Considered the “bottom of the world” by most, Antarctica is often perceived as a barren, desolate tundra where there is little to no possibility of sustaining life. Being the “coldest, windiest, and driest continent on Earth,” one could easily imagine living on the Antarctic continent being near impossible (CIA 2018). However, the opposite can be found true of the southernmost continent. Antarctica boasts around 75 active research stations around the continent to support hundreds to thousands of researchers and support staff for both year-round and austral summer seasons (Dag Jølle n.d.). Most permanent research stations and huts established by various countries around the globe are built on top of barren rock, due to majority of the continent
The global sea level rose about 17 centimeters (6.7 inches) in the last century (NASA). The rate in the last decade, however, is nearly double that of the last century. With climate change on the rise, higher temperatures, more droughts, and wilder weather will prevail. These changes will affect animals, ecosystems, and people.
National Geographic, “…that over the past century, the Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) has risen by 4 to 8 inches…” (Sea Level Rise). This rise is due to the melting ice as well as thermal expansion. Gore begins to state this fact in order to provide another example of global warming for his audience with the line, “When ice melts in mountains and in Antarctica and Greenland- when land-based ice melts—it raises the sea level” (Gore). The risen sea levels need to be addressed when referring to global warming because if they are not they will lead to floods throughout the world such as, “An area of Bandladesh is due to be flooded where ten million people live. A large area of Florida is due to be flooded. The Florida Keys are very much at risk. The Everglades are at risk”
The polar regions are most affected and vulnerable to the warming temperatures because the poles are covered in ice. The world’s ice sheets are melting faster than ever and temperatures in the Arctic region are rising twice as fast as anywhere else on Earth according to the NRDC. This will have a serious impact on people, wildlife and plants in that region. The National Climate Assessment has said that “By the year 2100, it 's estimated our oceans will be one to four feet higher, threatening coastal systems and low-lying areas, including entire island nations and the world 's largest cities, including New York, Los Angeles, and Miami as well as Mumbai, Sydney, and Rio de Janeiro”. Polar bears are in great threat as the ice sheets melt because they use the ice to travel across the land and hunt. As the sea-ice platforms move further apart, the swimming conditions become more dangerous. The U.S Geological Survey done by the National Wildlife Federation predicts that by the year 2050, two thirds of all polar bears will disappear. Researcher Bill Fraser has tracked the Adelie penguins in Antarctica and reported the numbers have fallen from 32,000 to only 11,000 over the last 30
One of the major effects of global warming is the rise of sea level due to thermal expansion of the ocean, in addition to the melting of land ice. Now there are dozens of land areas that sit well below sea level and the majority of those land areas are very well populated. At least 40 percent of the world 's population lives within 62 miles of the ocean, putting millions of lives and billions of dollars ' worth of property and infrastructure at risk. (Juliet Christian-Smith, 2011) This means if the sea level rises to the projected level of 25 meters (82 feet) half of the world will retreat back to the ocean. (Rohrer, 2007) Also rising sea levels means higher tides and storm surges riding on ever-higher seas which are more dangerous to people and coastal inf...
“In the 20th century alone, sea levels rose 0.17 meters predictions for the next century range anywhere from 0.18 to 0.59 meters” (ELC, 2013). From the increasing to oceans temperatures, it could be nice to swim in but it is a big danger to our oceans. Studies say that around one fourth of our oceans coral reefs have died over the last few decades. One of the leading causes to this was due to coral bleaching which happens when there are severe changes in the water temperature, light, and nutrients. Severe weathering to Earth could eventually lead to stronger and more frequent storms. When it gets warmer, more evaporation takes place, which leads to an increase of precipitation. This could vary from certain locations due to its weather conditions. Some parts of the word experience flooding while others experience droughts. Health issues are a big controversy in the world due to extreme heat waves causing deaths around the world. All of these issues are signs that global warming and climate change are not slowing
Solar power for instance is one of the most popular and easiest of all of the renewable energy sources to harness, especially for home and business uses. (Galbraith) For around the same ...