ANTARCTICA MELTS!!!

Antarctic ice may melt 20 years sooner than estimated — global sea levels likely to rise by an additional three inches by 2100

The fact that the polar #icesheets are melting as the planet gets warmers is no secret. However, scientists predict that the effects may be much worse than initially estimated.

In addition to the overall effects of #ClimateChange, ice cover will also be affected by internal climate variability, which conventional prediction models don’t consider.

Accounting for climate variability, the global sea level may rise by another 2.7 to 4.3 inches by 2100, according to a new study. 

The study found that model simulation that did not include the effects of internal climate variability significantly delayed the ice sheet's retreat by up to 20 years and underestimated future sea-level rise.

It may not seem like much, but further increase in sea levels will only add to the destruction displayed by natural calamities.

What is climate variability?

Most research around climate change uses a mean temperature by averaging the results of climate models. The process smoothens the peaks caused by climate variability and reduces the average number of days above temperature thresholds.

When one includes variability, the results accommodate for more warm days and more sunshine. On those days, the ice will melt further, with the temperatures being above the mean threshold.

The scientists also found that while atmospheric variations had a more considerable and more immediate impact on the ice sheet — ocean variability was also a significant factor.