Just out of curiosity, and because I’ve got RSS feeds for any headlines concerning global warming and ice age: I see plenty of science-industry panic over global warming, but nobody seems to consider the idea that the warming trend could actually result in an ice age. It might seem counter intuitive (and it may well be, since I’m the only one thinking it), but I can visualize a scenario where it’s not only possible, but probable.
Consider this: the global climate is determined by the temperature of the oceans. Global warming is triggering a worldwide thaw of glacial ice, as well as the ice shelf of Antarctica. With all that melt water blending in with seawater, and bearing in mind that melt water is very, very cold, isn’t it conceivable that the temperature of the oceans will drop? And if the oceans’ temperatures drop, the temperature of the air will drop, too. And on the topic of rising sea levels, well, that seems to set up the scenario for an impending ice age as well, because there will be a lot of water freed up to freeze into new glaciers.
This is not some doomsday prophesy, and I’m not suggesting that there’s any conspiracy, I’m just asking a simple question because I’m no scientist but this idea seems really plausible to me.
If you liked that post, then try these...
Organic molecules found on alien world for the first time on February 21st, 2008
Gravity Wave on April 7th, 2008
Giant 8-Foot-Long Monster-Scorpion-Lobster Bug Emerges from the Sea! (of time...) on November 21st, 2007
Turtles All The Way Down on July 11th, 2008
Global Warming Activists Villainized [Again] on July 24th, 2009
3 Comments
Gotta consider that the ocean is very big and very deep. The temp near the bottom of the ocean is near freezing without the help of melting ice, so there would be no net change.
JohnnyB: That’s the point I failed to make; that we’re so focused on global warming that we’re potentially missing the fact that it can result in a global cooling. New post:
http://mattmitchellfiction.com/unabashed/379/can-global-warming-result-in-global-cooling/
That an the glacial melt water is fresh water, the oceans are salt. While eventually it’ll all even out, fresh water is lighter than salt water (of the same temperature). So the mix would be even more interesting (colder fresh water on top of warmer salt water).