I’m sure this is not what global warming naysayers want to hear, but an iceberg about twice the size of Manhattan has just broken off of a Greenland glacier, Petermann Glacier.
This was actually predicted by scientists last Fall, but as you should well know by now, scientists are just money-hungry, greedy, lying rascals who will say anything to get attention, so they can’t be trusted…. Well, that’s what some people think, at least.
What’s the basic result of this new development? As Nathan noted earlier today, this moves the front end of Petermann Glacier “farther inland than it has been in 150 years.” It also moves us one step closer to an ice-free Arctic.
Anyone well aware of this topic will know that these things happen, naturally, but that humans are accelerating the rate of such occurrences and such changes. One of the to concerns of human-caused global warming is the actual rate of warming. This is one of the things that makes it and the resulting climate changes so destructive and concerning.
Another major concern is that these types of events create feedback loops that could eventually make global warming unstoppable. And could lead to temperatures that humans simply cannot go outside in. In other words, cannot live in.
But anyway, time to get back to checking Facebook for fun cat and dog photos, right?
Well, I hope not. This, in my opinion, is just another knock on the door, another call to wake up and get to work, to provide a future for one’s kids and grandkids that does not equal suffering through hell on earth, extreme natural disasters, and famine.
Back to the glacier…. So, I actually wrote about Petermann Glacier two years ago, the last time a massive iceberg (or ice island) came cracking off. That ice island was actually four times the size of Manhattan. (Why we always compare them to Manhattan, I don’t know.) So, it was about twice the size of the one that broke of this week.
Of course, to global warming deniers, that means that global warming has stopped, which would make no sense to a logical person. That would be like saying global warming has stopped when Winter comes around… as many a denier actually goes out and trumpets, showing as many people as they can just how “smart” they are. Unfortunately, the general populous shifts a bit on its understanding that global warming is happening (or misunderstanding that it isn’t) with the seasons… let’s hope that doesn’t happen to you as the northern hemisphere Summer fades and Fall and Winter roll in. Or as the Petermann Glacier and Greenland gain a bit of ice and snow again.
The Petermann glacier probably won’t last. It’s days are likely numbered. But let’s hope that the human species doesn’t follow it closely off the edge of existence.
Image Credits: Andreas Muenchow, University of Delaware; NASA
Hello, abby.
I guess there is an assumption that readers realize nearly 100% of climate scientists agree on this matter (humans are causing considerable global warming and climate change) and that every national science academy in the world has backed them. With that assumption, it’s clear that people either understand that’s the case or are so locked into some absurd denial that there’s no point in trying to help them.
But I guess you are right that there are many who simply don’t know these basic facts.
This was an interesting story, but it’s just a small side-effect. With a matter as important as global warming, which even national defense agencies are very worried about know (think of countries or large regions facing increasing famine and drought, getting displaced by extreme weather events or rising sea levels — what is going to happen in those regions as people become more and more desperate, or try to migrate elsewhere?).
With the issue as large as it is — possibly the largest threat to human civilization we’ve ever faced — i think it’s critical that one have at least a basic understanding of the story.
Here’s a good place to start: http://www.skepticalscience.com/big-picture.html
As is this: http://planetsave.com/2012/01/19/what-is-causing-global-warming/
Or videos on this page: http://planetsave.com/2011/10/06/global-warming-videos/