The National Centre for Polar
and Ocean Research (NCPOR) in Goa has come out with a study predicting that there
would be a 24% increase in the expansion of the Amery Ice Shelf (AIS) boundaries in Antarctica by 2021 and another
24 per cent by 2026 from its 2016 positions. In this article we will see what
is Amery Ice Shelf, where it is? And how it impact us?
So
what is Amery Ice Shelf (AIS)?
Situated at the head of Prydz
Bay between the Lars Christensen Coast
and Ingrid Christensen Coast, the Amery Ice Shelf is a broad ice
shelf in Antarctica. The name “Cape Amery” was given to a
coastal angle mapped on February 11, 1931. It is part of Mac. Robertson Land. The
Amery Ice Shelf is one of the largest glacier drainage basins
in the world, located, at about 70ºS Latitude, 70ºE Longitude on the east
coast of Antarctica. So the next question comes in our minds that what is Ice Shelves? Let’s find out.
The floating sheets of ice in
the oceans is called ‘ice shelves’.
It plays an important role in maintaining the stability of a glacier. Actually, Ice shelves connect a glacier to
the landmass. Stability of a glacier, why it is important to maintain it?
We all know the impact of greenhouse
gasses in our lives. These gasses traps the outgoing long-wave radiation emitted
by the earth’s surface and create a heating effect. These gasses act as a glasshouse and helps in maintaining the
planet’s temperature at an appropriate level to sustain life. After industrialization,
there has been a rapid increase in the emission of the greenhouse gasses,
resulting global warming. You can
read about Ozone Layer here. There
is no doubt that global warming will cause melting of glaciers and there will
be rise in the sea level. The rate at which today glaciers are disappearing is
alarming, and scientists have estimated that there will be a rise of 3 meters
in the average sea level by the end of this century. The ice sheet mass
balance, sea stratification, and bottom water formation are important factors
for the balancing of a glacier. Latent and sensible heat processes are also
very important in maintaining stability of the glaciers. The insulation of ice shelves from atmospheric forcing is
depends on a temperature gradient
that the ocean cavity beneath the ice shelves provides. It is the pressure
exerted by the ice shelves upon the ocean cavity that determines this
temperature gradient hence maintaining the stability of the glaciers. Now let’s
understand the importance of this study.
Significance
of the study
The National Centre for Polar
and Ocean Research NCPOR observations revealed a critical cooling of the sea
surface temperature, resulting in an advancement of the ice shelf by 88 per
cent in the past 15 years. These changes is somehow a good news for humans
because this would contribute in a major way to climate change.
Thank you for reading this
article, you can share your feedback in the comments section. You can also
suggest the topics on which you want our analysis.
Please subscribe to this post for up-to-dated information on world
affairs.
Follow our facebook page for more such articles at:- The Civil Analyst
👌👌
ReplyDelete