land ice

by prof. growhener
(sweden)

If ice melts in the a glass the level does not rise, but places such as Antarctica and Greenland consist of land ice, which when melted will increase the sea level globally.

Barry's Response - Yes, professor. That is a major concern. It is one Al Gore stresses in An Inconvenient Truth.

Calling Archemedes

An object, when placed in water will displace the lesser of its volume or its mass of water. Its volume if it sinks, its mass if it floats.
Floating ice is already displacing its mass, so when it melts, its mass simply integrates with the remaining water and there is no change in displacement.

Ice that has any of its mass propped up on solid ground underneath will contribute its previously supported mass to the total of the water body it drains into upon melting. This constitutes the majority of Antarctic, Canadian Archipelago and Greenland ice, but not the rest of the Arctic ice, which is sitting on the Arctic ocean.

One exception: If the ice is forming a natural bridge over the water (which would remain in position if the water were drained), then it's not really floating. Its weight is supported by the neighbouring ice, which is supported by the land it rests upon. The meltwater from this situation would raise the water level.

A Chilling look at Melting Ice

We know land ice contributes to sea level rise. If your driveway glacier melts, your front yard might flood, but your whiskey stays level if your ice cubes melt in it (unless you drink it too fast). Here's the elephant (or polar bear?) in the room.

Is there anything we need to worry about? Sea levels have risen and fallen for millennia. During the last Ice Age, sea levels were over 100 meters lower. Ice sheets didn't collapse during the Medieval Warm Period (900-1300 AD). How come? There's more to ice sheets than "temperature goes up, ice melts."

Antarctica, for example, is getting ice. East Antarctica has been gaining ice mass, which offsets losses in West Antarctica. What's up? Because it doesn't fit the doom narrative, it doesn't make headlines.

What Models don't Tell you

There have been predictions of sea level rise -- New York under water, Florida gone, Al Gore rowing a boat past his beachfront mansion. The catch is that many of these predictions have already failed.

NASA scientist James Hansen predicted Manhattan would be underwater by 1988. They're not. IPCC's high-end estimates consistently overestimate sea level rise.

There's a rise in sea levels. About 3 mm per year (about the thickness of a penny). At this rate, one foot of sea level rise would take 100 years. This isn't the Atlantis scenario climate alarmists like.

Natural Forces too

Mainstream climate discussions ignore some key players in ice sheet dynamics:
- The Sun drives Earth's climate. Low solar activity cools the planet (see: the Little Ice Age). What will happen to ice sheets as the Sun gets less active?
- Warm ocean currents influence melting in Greenland, for example. Ocean circulation patterns (like AMOC) can change a lot.
- Over 100 volcanoes are active under Antarctica's ice. Geothermal heat contributes to melting, but that's not politically useful.

Is climate science corrupted by politics and money? There's a lot of money in climate change. The government, corporations, and NGOs invest billions in "green" initiatives. The only way to get research grants, carbon taxes, and renewable energy subsidies is to prove there's a problem...Is science objective?

It's not science when mainstream views are dismissed, censored, or labeled "deniers." It's dogma.

It's like a secular religion, the climate change movement. Apocalyptic predictions (doom in 12 years), original sin (industrialization), and salvation (carbon taxes, solar panels).

Is this a sign we should be reckless with creation? That's not happening. We're even called to be good stewards in the Bible. Stewardship isn't about fear-based policies or unelected global elites. Science, reason, and innovation balance human progress and environmental responsibility.

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