The West Antarctic ice sheet is collapsing due to global warming.
Three studies have all concluded that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet has begun to collapse. This collapse will impact humanity for generations to come, and the indications are that it is too late to stop it.
Effects of the West Antarctic ice sheet collapsing and melting include:
- Satellite measurements compiled by UK researchers have shown that Antarctica is losing 160 billion tonnes of ice per year
- Sea level rises up to 3m over 100 years
- Inundation of low-lying coastal areas – displacing millions of people
- Loss of rice-growing areas across Asia including Vietnam, Bangladesh, Egypt and China (3 million hectares).
External links
- West Antarctic ice collapse ‘could drown Middle East and Asia crops’, The Guardian, 22 May 2014
- We can now only watch as West Antarctica’s ice sheets collapse, The Conversation, 20 May 2014
- Big trouble in the Antarctic has been brewing for a long time, Climate Code Red, 15 June 2014
