&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Scientists reveal Antarctic ice sheet witnessed a catastrophe 9,000 years ago - It was hotter")
The West Antarctica ice sheet is at risk of collapse owing to climate change. Now, a study has revealed that the East Antarctica ice sheet completely collapsed 9,000 years ago because of the warming ocean water. The East Antarctic Ice Sheet is a vast body of land ice in East Antarctica. Researchers found evidence in seafloor sediments near Japan’s Syowa Station that proves that the collapse happened because of warm deep ocean currents. The study was led by Professor Yusuke Suganuma of the National Institute of Polar Research (NiPR). Scientists have warned in the past that if Antarctic ice melts, global water levels will rise by several feet.
To understand future sea level changes, Suganuma set out on a quest to learn how the Antarctic ice sheets responded to a warming climate in the past. His team took sediment cores from Lutzow-Holm Bay’s seafloor. The layers of sediment showed proof of changes during an extremely hot period on Earth when temperatures were higher than they are today. This period was known as the early Holocene, a time span that started after the last ice age.
Rare beryllium isotopes and tiny marine fossils were measured to reveal the timing of this collapse. All the data suggested that the East Antarctic ice sheet broke up 9,000 years ago. The culprit was the circumpolar deep water, a warm, salty current that flows hundreds of feet below the surface. This water moved upwards and onto the continental shelf, cutting away the ice shelves. The fracture in these shelves left the ice with no structural support, causing the inland ice to flow faster towards the ocean.
Ice sheet collapse was rapid
The researchers noted that the ice and ocean formed a positive feedback loop. The surface ocean turned fresh from the meltwater from the Antarctic regions. The warm deep water moved towards the land, creating a "cascading positive feedback". Lighter water moved above the heavier water; hence, the cooler surface water did not mix with the downward water. The collapse occurred rapidly owing to several factors, such as the rising sea level and the shape of the seafloor.
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