With the ice over Greenland melting rapidly and Antarctica, When will Florida Keys be underwater?

Question

It seems like after watching all of the science documentaries and new evidence it may happen in less than 20 years. Could this be true?

Answer 1

When the water gets deep enough ...... SELL NOW

Answer 2

The problem is that the land doesn't even need to go underwater.  The sea level simply has to be high enough that storm surges during high tides can erode the land, innundate water supples, and damage buildings, roads and other infrastructure.  The Keys will become isolated and unusable due to storm wave damage long before they're fully underwater.

I'd give most of the Keys longer than 20 years, but I sure wouldn't invest in property there (or anywhere within 10 meters of sea level).

Past natural warmings have resulted in sea level rise of about 1.6 meters per century, a number far greater than what most scientists have assumed for Greenland and Antarctica (in last year's IPCC report for example):

Rohling and his colleagues found an average sea level rise of 1.6m (64in) each century during the interglacial period.

Back then, Greenland was 3C to 5C (5.4F to 9F) warmer than now - which is similar to the warming period expected in the next 50 to 100 years, Dr Rohling said.

Current models of ice sheet activity do not predict rates of change this large. However, they also do not include many of the dynamic processes already being observed by glaciologists, the researchers said.

"The average rise of 1.6m per century that we find is roughly twice as high as the maximum estimates in the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report, and so offers the first potential constraint on the dynamic ice sheet component that was not included in the headline IPCC values," explained Dr Rohling.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/natur...

This would be achieved through accelerated sea level rise, which is now being observed:

"Global averaged sea level continued to rise through 2006 and 2007. Modern satellite measurements reveal that since 1993, sea-level has been rising at an average rate of about 3 mm per year, substantially faster than the average for the 20th century of about 1.7 mm per year, estimated from coastal sea-level measurements. These coastal measurements indicate that the 2006/2007 global averaged sea level is about 200 mm higher than in 1870 and that since 1870 there has been a significant increase in the rate of the sea-level rise."

http://wcrp.wmo.int/documents/WCRPnews_2...

Given that the current rate of melting is much faster than what we're able to see in past natural warmings, that natural rate of 1.6 meters per century could well be esceeded:

"Instead of sea levels rising by about 40 centimetres, as the IPCC predicts in one of its computer forecasts, the true rise might be as great as several metres by 2100. That is why, they say, planet Earth today is in 'imminent peril.'"

http://www.heatisonline.org/contentserve...

Answer 3

I would think Hawaii island would be first

Answer 4

I don't know where you heard the 20 year time-frame, but that sounds extremely unlikely and contradicts what I've read in the scientific literature. I suspect the terms 20 feet and 20 years have been mixed up.  If Greenland melted completely it would raise the sea level by about 20 feet.

The thing we do know about Greenland is that it's melting faster than expected (not in 20 years though).  Over the past few years, scientists have discovered that as the surface ice melts it flows (like a waterfall) to the bedrock below.  This then becomes a lubricant which allows the glaciers to move faster.  That is definitely a concern and should prompt us to action.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/200...

Antarctica too is loosing overall ice mass (despite uninformed assertions to the contrary):

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?re...

Answer 5

Not at all, this is the worst part of the global warming scare. The media has seized on a big money maker and are producing outright lies to get people to watch their programs. Over dramatization sells and they are willing to capitalize on it. It has gotten so bad that Discovery and Nat Geo are nearly fictional stations.

Answer 6

Not anytime soon but I wouldn't buy any ocean-front property there. In some areas we can build barriers and dikes to hold back the high tide, but not everywhere. Sea levels will rise, they tend upwards during interglacial periods like we are in today. As Ken points out, it's a complex mechanism and if the water beneath the glacier melts it can speed things up dramatically. Fortunately, the increases most scientists predict can be dealt with since they will be gradual enough for us to build buffers to keep the water out, like they do in the Netherlands, or move inland.

Some of the Antarctic ice loss, no one knows how much, is due to volcanic activity below the surface, we know of at least one massive eruption 2000 years ago and volcanoes never go away, they just become dormant to some extent. Part of Antarctica is gaining mass but the results posted in Ken's link aren't surprising or necessarily distressing. Neither Greenland nor Antarctica will melt rapidly, it will likely be an off and on process taking thousands of years, not a steady decline.

Another problem we'll face is that as sea levels rise, wetlands are underwater. Without wetlands flooding is can be severe so we'd have to help nature adapting new land into wetlands to avoid what happened in New Orleans occurring on a wider scale. It's not just coastal inhabitants that need to be concerned but there's no reason to panic, it will take time for this to happen. Coastal real estate may not be worth much in coming years but so far Hollywood's elite still buy there so maybe they know something we don't, they always act as if that's true.

Answer 7

id say here in about 6 minutes

Answer 8

Next Wednesday

Answer 9

Well, don't take my word for it, listen to what NPR, one of the most far left wing climate change 'we hate America' stations out had to say about it.  In a broad cast about 2 weeks ago, they reported that the amount  of melt is no where what had been predicted, and that the amount that is taking place now would raise the oceans by no more than 1/4 inch per decade.

That means the ocean would not rise one full inch for 40 years

So by their own numbers man might not even exist by the time the beaches might be flooded.

Its right on their website if you care too look it up,  about 2 weeks ago.

Answer 10

Probably less than 100 years, but definitely more than 20.  The oceans have only risen 6 mm or so-- barely measurable.  That's because what's been melting are the ice shelves that extend out to sea.  These sit on water.  In that case, only the part that's above water is added to the sea water volume.  When that is gone, which will be in the range of 10-50 years, then the real ice caps that sit on bedrock will be able to slide into the sea and break up.  They're doing that in Greenland, but it is small compared to Antarctica.  As things appear now, the Arctic may melt entirely before the major ice shelves are completely melted in the Antarctic.  Then the bulk of the land-locked ice there will be free to move.

Answer 11

The Antarctica ice sheet is expanding and at record amounts of ice. Who is telling you these lies?

Answer 12

The real question is, who cares.

This ice has melted before and it was in the form of snow and rain when it got there to begin with.

How did those fossils get to these places, and under the ice ?

The weather is changing where you now stand, but where you stand is moving, see tectonic plate movement, so the weather must also change.  Bet the change is the same as the movement.

Answer 13

Global warming alarmists and kool aid drinkers can't make up their minds.  First we have the Everglades disappearing...  Basically swamp becoming land... Now, you are crying the opposite?  Come on!  If the keys goes away, then so be it....  Geologists are finding underwater cities all of the time and so if a few islands sink, then we should figure it is a very fair trade considering the fact that it has been going on since the beginning of this planet.  None of this of course was caused by global warming.

Answer 14

That would happen in less than 45 years. Its an actual researched and proven fact.

Answer 15

No, the media is trying to scare you.  Do you know why it's called Greenland?  Because under all that ice there was once a green forest.  Warming and cooling cycles have been happening all the time.

Answer 16

let the swamps build up again and it should protect you for a century or so.

we call it 'managed retreat' in the u.k., our e.a. are going to let a bit of the east coast go back to fenland.