Freethought & Rationalism Archive

CitizenBushido · 10-23-2005, 10:28 PM

Canoeman where did you get that map from?

Jesse · 10-23-2005, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CitizenBushido

Canoeman where did you get that map from?

It's from the NOVA page I linked to in my earlier post.

Christopher Lord · 10-24-2005, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amen-Moses

10 feet! Try 150 feet! That's where we'll be at if the Antarctic ice cap melted. The arctic sheets could all melt with hardly any difference to sea levels but the Antarctic contains more water than all the lakes and inland seas of the world combined several times over.

Since you didn't address this directly, I'll make a note of it. A melting Arctic will not change sea levels nearly as much as a melting Antarctic because arctic ice is mostly floating.

Antarctic ice is almost all up on land, and so is not displacing any sea-water.

Consider what happens when a floating ice cube melts. The level of liquid in the glass remains almost the same.

CanoeMan · 10-24-2005, 10:47 AM

I seem to recall a sci-fi story in which people launched the ice into space to avoid flooding. Is something like this at all possible? It doesn't have to be shooting it into space (which sounds costly, impractical and difficult), but is there some way we can make sure that the ice doesn't melt even if the temperature rises? Or if it melts, make sure it doesn't affect the global water levels?

Yggdrasill · 10-24-2005, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CanoeMan

I seem to recall a sci-fi story in which people launched the ice into space to avoid flooding. Is something like this at all possible? It doesn't have to be shooting it into space (which sounds costly, impractical and difficult), but is there some way we can make sure that the ice doesn't melt even if the temperature rises? Or if it melts, make sure it doesn't affect the global water levels?

There's no practical way to do anything about rising sea levels, beyond building levees around urban centers and such. It is theoretically possible to store water in various ways, underground, in dams, in tanks, etc. but the amount of water in question would make such a project impossible, it would be several orders of magnitude easier to build something like a 250 feet high, 1 mile wide embankment around all low-lying areas.

PaperCut · 10-24-2005, 05:01 PM

Water World wasn't that bad. Have you watch The Postman (1997)?

P.

Berthold · 10-24-2005, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Lord

Since you didn't address this directly, I'll make a note of it. A melting Arctic will not change sea levels nearly as much as a melting Antarctic because arctic ice is mostly floating.

Greenland is quite a chunk, though.

Sarpedon · 10-25-2005, 08:16 AM

There's always the Alpha Centauri solution--Launch a big shade to reduce the amount of light hitting the earth...

Alter · 11-01-2005, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Lord

Since you didn't address this directly, I'll make a note of it. A melting Arctic will not change sea levels nearly as much as a melting Antarctic because arctic ice is mostly floating.

Except Greenland, which you forgot. The Greenland ice sheet is above sea level. Also, in this picture (where they show what would happen if they all melted):

they neglected to show how the land under greenalnd is really just a ring, the center would be a large bay if all the ice melted, opening toward the left.

Late_Cretaceous · 11-03-2005, 03:05 PM

America looks so emasculated without Florida.

I actually refused to watch Waterworld when given the chance

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10-23-2005, 10:28 PM	#21
CitizenBushido Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Montgomery, PA Posts: 85	Canoeman where did you get that map from?

10-24-2005, 10:47 AM	#24
CanoeMan Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: out for some Rest 'n Relaxation Posts: 3,106	I seem to recall a sci-fi story in which people launched the ice into space to avoid flooding. Is something like this at all possible? It doesn't have to be shooting it into space (which sounds costly, impractical and difficult), but is there some way we can make sure that the ice doesn't melt even if the temperature rises? Or if it melts, make sure it doesn't affect the global water levels?

10-24-2005, 05:01 PM	#26
PaperCut Regular Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Over here Posts: 287	Water World wasn't that bad. Have you watch The Postman (1997)? P.

10-25-2005, 08:16 AM	#28
Sarpedon Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Minnesota, the least controversial state in the le Posts: 8,446	There's always the Alpha Centauri solution--Launch a big shade to reduce the amount of light hitting the earth...

11-03-2005, 03:05 PM	#30
Late_Cretaceous Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Alberta Posts: 1,049	America looks so emasculated without Florida. I actually refused to watch Waterworld when given the chance

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