Summit County Citizens Voice

Research finds that ice sheets can be very sensitive to short-term temperature variations. Photo by Bob Berwyn.

Study shows some glaciers and ice fields can respond quickly and dramatically even to short-lived climate changes

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — It’s pretty clear that glaciers and ice fields have been melting the past few decades under relentless global warming. But scientists aren’t sure exactly how fast the melting will proceed, whether it will speed up, or perhaps stabilize at some point.

A new study looking back at historic changes in response to climate variations may help answer some of those questions. The research shows that glaciers on Canada’s Baffin Island expanded rapidly during a brief cold snap about 8,200 years ago, suggesting that changes can be sudden and drastic.

“One of the questions scientists have been asking is how long it takes for these huge chunks of ice to respond to a global climate phenomenon,” said study co-author Jason Briner, PhD, a University at Buffalo associate professor of geology. “People don’t know whether glaciers can respond quickly enough to matter to our grandchildren, and we’re trying to answer this from a geological perspective, by looking at Earth’s history.” (more…)

Filed under: Environment, global warming, climate and weather | Tagged: Environment, global warming, climate, glaciers, Columbia University, Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, Baffin Island, Younger Dryas | 2 Comments »