According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Greenland is now melting faster than anyone thought. Which is bad news for anyone living in a coastal region.
Unfortunately, between 40 and 50 percent on the world’s population lives in areas that are susceptible to rising sea levels. This makes sea levels one of the most dangerous part of climate change, and there is no slow down in sight.
What’s In The Report
Scientists have studied the last 46 years of Greenland’s ice records to figure out just how fast it is actually melting, and the results were shocking. The ice sheets are melting 6 times faster than previously thought. This makes Greenland’s ice sheets the number one source of new water added to the ocean.
The report states since 1972, the sea level has risen by 13.7 millimeters (roughly half an inch) by Greenland alone. The scarier part is that half of the increase occurred in the last 8 years. This strengthens the claims of ice melting faster.
Not The First Study To Suggest This
There have been several studies in the past analyzing this very topic, and they all seem to be in agreement. Current ice loss trends have never been worse. The studies suggest that in the past few decades, ice is melting 50% faster than the pre-industrial age.
And more recently, it has been melting 33% faster than 20th-century records.
Coastal Regions Beware
It is estimated that ice sheets in Greenland can raise sea levels by 23 feet. Determining how fast the ice is melting is imperative to plan for the future.
For example, many parts of New York City are only 16 feet above sea level with others even lower. Highly populated coastal regions around the world will be at serious risk.
Most importantly, this is Greenland in isolation. In reality, it is not the only part of the world where ice is melting. Rising sea levels are a global problem that will have serious consequences if the effects of global warming are not dealt with soon.
