Study Predicts Ice Melt If Fossil Fuels Are Burned

In the essay, “Global Warming is Eroding Glacial Ice,” Andrew C. Revkin argues that global warming is the primary cause for many of the world’s natural disasters; including flash floods, climate change, and the melting of the polar ice caps. He includes multiple accounts of expert testimony as well as a multitude amount of facts and statistics to support his theory that global warming is a threat to the world. However, in the essay “Cold Comfort for ‘Global Warming’,” Phillip Stott makes the complete opposite argument. He argues that global warming is nothing to be worried about and the melting of the polar icecaps is caused by the interglacial period we are currently in. After reading both of these essays and doing

As Earths average temperature increases every year, the discussion of climate change has become a significant topic in the scientific community. Human activities such as powering factories, running automobiles or something as simple as burning wood for heat, emit dangerous greenhouse gases. What makes these greenhouse gases so detrimental is that they absorb the heat radiating off of Earth and keep it in the lower atmosphere creating a “blanket” of warmth around the Earth’s surface. This causes a drastic increase in the Earths average temperature. Due to the rise in temperature, the polar caps have been melting faster than ever, this is dangerous not only because of the risk of floods and sea level increase but ocean water will become less saline and ecosystems will be destroyed, impacting humans just as much as marine life. In the article, Understand faulty thinking to tackle climate change by George Marshall, Marshall states that most people in our world today do not care about climate change because it will not affect them, “Which points to the real problem: climate change is exceptionally amorphous, … no deadlines, no geographic location, no single cause or solution.” (Marshall 2014). Because the author makes it clear that climate change is indeed a great plight, and fails to be acknowledged by people, it is a significant matter that should be discussed

“Burning all deposits of coal, oil, and natural gas would raise the temperature enough to melt the entire ice sheet covering Antartica.” According to scientists, this melting could occur in the next a thousand years. This melting would cause the ocean waters to increase rapidly and would cause a huge world phenomenon.

My beliefs upon global warming is that it is a very serious matter that should not be taken lightly. I chose global warming as the topic of my research paper to raise awareness of the deadly effects that the Earth’s warming can cause. Many people go about their day not realizing how much energy they are omitting and how much of that energy contributes to the growth of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It should be the duty of every individual to recognize their involvement in the Earth’s warming and what they can do to reduce it. I personally believe that the Earth provides for living organisms but it should not be taken for granted. With many years of drilling for fossil fuels and polluting the Earth I believe it is well overdue

One of the global warming changes our planet is going through is the melting of glaciers in the Arctic sea. John Hawkins states, “How much Arctic ice really matters is an open question since the very limited evidence we have suggests that a few

In “ Think Again: Climate change,” Bill Mckibben addresses the climate change catastrophe. The damage has already begun and it may be too late to save the planet. There has been many debates and controversies on climate change, but that is about to change, and scientists have accepted the fact that humans are warming the planet. In 2007, the Arctic Ocean melted more ice than ever before. Again in 2008, more ice was melted and the Arctic is now open water. In addition, other regions will eventually suffer from crop loss and food shortages. Eventually, climate change will force states to start conflicts and wars over resources.

The author of the article “Implications of Arctic permafrost thaw,” published on March 2012, written by Ian Dunlop a former international oil, gas and coal industry executive. He was chaired at the Australian Coal Association in 1987-88. After years, he was chaired to the Australian Greenhouse office Experts Group on Emissions Trading 1998-2000. He was also the CEO of the Australian Institute of Company Directors in 1997-2001. A chairman of Safe Climate Australia and a Member of the Club of Rome. His article was published in a magazine which, informs people about the personal opinion Ian Dunlop has about the climate change. This source is relative for my thesis because it explains the impact of the melting ice, on the environment/humans.

Global warming projections have been proven wrong many times. The majority of predictions made by scientists were not true. Al Gore, the 45th Vice President of the United States and an environmentalist, said in 2008 that the North Pole would have no ice in the next five years. “...Arctic sea ice coverage was nearly 9,000 cubic kilometers by the end of [2013] melting season, up from about 6,000 cubic kilometers during the same time last year.” The Arctic ice has not been decreasing, but increasing. Just like Al Gore, most of the other scientist that says global warming is an important issue, are

In the video Let's Save the Last Pristine Continent, Robert Swan paints a vivid picture of global warming and its affects on Antarctica. One of the major problems he discusses is that due to the fact of the hole in the ozone there is what they call an ice melt. This is where pieces of ice the size of small nations are breaking off and melting. It is believed that this will cause the ocean to rise by 1 meter over the next hundred years. Mr. Swan believes that if we learn to use more renewable energy along with managing our energy we may slow down and even possibly stop the ice melt. This video has shown me the importance of recycling and conserving energy. This is not an issue that can be stopped by one person, it will take all of us to make

Here is a crazy fact for you, “since the late 1970s, the Arctic ocean has lost an average of 20,800 square miles of ice a year” (Ramsayer). That is roughly the size of West Virginia. Global warming is unprecedented situation that will never honestly stop existing. The Earth goes through natural cooling and warming trends. That is why we have in the past we have seen ice ages in Earth’s timeline. The real question is if us as humans are contributing to this global warming. As mentioned in National Geographic, “we have taken a great deal of carbon that used to be locked up in the Earth in the form of coal and undisturbed oil and natural gas and released it into the atmosphere. That carbon hadn’t

Thankfully, Holden’s prediction has proven incorrect, and by an enormous margin. Carter adds that carbon dioxide accounts for less than 4 percent of atmospheric greenhouse warming; furthermore, human-induced emissions are responsible for a measly 3 percent of the previously mentioned 4 percent (Carter 183). By this math, the grand total of human-caused carbon dioxide in the atmosphere comes to an infinitesimal 0.0012 percent. To combat the IPCC on its charges that Antarctic Ice was melting at alarming rates, Newman notes a study undertaken by NASA, in which they found that Antarctica actually gained some 112 billion tons of ice each year from 1992 to 2001 and some 82 billion tons between 2003 and 2008 (Newman 30). Clearly, there certainly is some amount of discourse and evidence that the impact of humans on global climate is being exaggerated to some degree.

Philipp Stott in his article "Gold Comfort for Global warming” considers that the temperature change as a perfectly natural event. He argues that climate change is part of Earth’s cycle, and that it right on schedule. He believes that people do not have much control over nature. He talks about the collapse of Larsen B ice shelf in Antarctica, the largest single event in a series of retreats by ice shelves in the Antarctica over the last 30 years. He considers this crash "perfect natural disaster" for journalists who are of the view that global warming is a result of greenhouse gas emissions and human activity in the modern world. According to P. Stott, the collapse of ice is a natural process of nature, and icebreakers are falling after a hot summer and high winds. He finds it impossible the North Pole is disappearing and neither is the South Pole. He writes about studies, which have shown that West Antarctic Ice Sheet may be getting thicker, not thinner. He describes the Antarctica as unusual continent with many "climates", and many geomorphological and glaciological regimes. Researchers of University of Illinois have reported that the temperature in Antarctica have been falling in the last decade. And it is not surprising, according to him, when parts of the continent are cooling to see some of the ice melts such as Larsen B. And at the time as people

Scientist believe that human activity is causing the earth’s temperature to increase unusually fast. They believe there is a correlation between increase levels of CO2 from burning fossil fuel and spikes in the earth’s temperature. From climate scientist discoveries 97% of all scientist believe that humans are the direct cause of global warming. Yet, based on two distinctly different arguments portrayed by the media, only 25% of US citizens believe that humans are the direct cause of global warming. One half of the media use scientific research as evidence and the other half uses tactics to keep the audience skeptical of scientific evidence on

When we take a look at fossil fuels, there are many other drawbacks to its usage other than the fact it is a depleting substance, there are also the environmental damages that result from the consumption of fossil fuels. One byproduct of burning fossil fuels is the release of efficient gasses that creates the greenhouse effect. In Bernard L Cohen’s book ”The Nuclear Energy Option” The greenhouse effect is caused by molecules in the earth’s atmosphere absorbing and reemitting infrared radiation. The more fuel burned by fossil fuels causes more carbon dioxide (CO2) to be released into the atmosphere which in turn allows for more radiation to be absorbed and redirected back towards the earth. These changes to temperature cause our ice caps to melt, ocean temperatures to rise and decreased agricultural output to be diminished. The outcome of these results affects the countries people directly. According to Cohen (2012), when the ice caps

In Market based Solutions To Climate Change by Richard L. Sandor says “The data shows that the climate was getting warmer and more erratic”(689). People have known about the connection between carbon pollution in the atmosphere and the climate rising. But, it was not until recent years that climate change has been a concern. Global warming is a tragedy waiting to happen. Climate change is real and has costs of not only animals in the wild, but human lives as well. In Market based Solutions To Climate Change by Richard L. Sandor says “In the poles, pieces of ice the size of Singapore are falling off of glaciers”(689). Like a terrorist attack it will come suddenly, bringing fire, floods, and other natural disasters. Rising sea levels will cause a horde of people from impoverished communities and migrate into areas on higher ground. Therefore, climate change can be reduced by government involvement, alternative energy and control over greenhouse gases.