The glaciers are melting, what's next?

Glaciers are landmarks that historically contain rich amounts of data through layers of ice depicting the weather conditions back in the past and much more. With climate change increasing, glaciers are starting to melt into the ocean. This is bad, here's why; consequently, with these glaciers melting, this leads to ocean levels to rise. Animals living on those glaciers will need to find new homes and weather systems around the world will become unreliable and change. (Why).   

                                                                      (Boyd)

According to World Wildlife, “Since the early 1900s, many glaciers around the world have been rapidly melting. Human activities are at the root of this phenomenon. Specifically, since the industrial revolution, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions have raised temperatures, even higher in the poles, and as a result, glaciers are rapidly melting, calving off into the sea and retreating on land.” Scientists predict by the summer of 2040, if humans continue to release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, the Arctic will be ice-free by then. (Why)

                                                                      (Passel)

The large amounts of cold glaciers entering the ocean cause's the ocean currents to slow down. Consequently because of dramatic ocean currents change, fisheries in the Gulf of Maine have been shown to collapse and more hurricanes and bigger storms will be happening around the world. (Why). The melting glaciers will also lead to ocean water levels to rise. This will increase coastal erosion and elevate the chances of storm surge. Storm surge is when water levels and atmospheric pressure rise in term leading to catastrophic storms and floods. (Introduction). Glaciers also have a huge role in balancing the earth's temperature with their white colors. They reflect sun-rays back into the atmosphere which then cools down the earth. 

If nothing is done to preserve these glaciers, irreversible climate changes will occur. New Hampshire will be seeing water levels rising, coastal erosion, storms, and floods in the foreseeable future. Aquatic life will be catastrophically affected and many fish and ecosystems humans depend on will die. With more unpredictable weather patterns and dangerous storms becoming more frequent. The future of this planet is in our hands, what will we do with it?

Bibliography

Boyd, Tiffany. “Why are glaciers and sea ice melting?” WWF, 2020, https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/why-are-glaciers-and-sea-ice-melting. Accessed 13 1 2021.

Hancock, Lorin. “Why are glaciers and sea ice melting?” WWF, 2020, https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/why-are-glaciers-and-sea-ice-melting. Accessed 13 1 2021.

“Introduction to Storm Surge.” NOAA, Storm Surge Unit, 2020, https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/surge/surge_intro.pdf. Accessed 13 1 2021.

Passel, Wim. “Why are glaciers and sea ice melting?” WWF, 2020, https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/why-are-glaciers-and-sea-ice-melting. Accessed 13 1 2021.