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In 1973, a California-sized hole appeared in the Antarctic ice where it remained for three consecutive years. The hole, called Weddell Polynya, eventually disappeared, before reopening in 2017. Scientists had struggled to explain the phenomenon, with theories such as cyclones or even a mix of climatic anomalies combining to create the perfect storm. Until now.
A new study has suggested that rivers of warm air in the sky may be responsible.
Atmospheric rivers can see up to 15 times the amount of water suspended in the atmosphere in the form of vapor.
Air vapor is hotter than ice in the Antarctic, so when one of them collides with ice, it could open a huge hole.
Diana Francis of Khalifa University of Science and Technology in the United Arab Emirates and her team have been collecting climatological data since 1973 and were able to identify an atmospheric river near the Weddell Polynya.
Ms. Francis told Nature Middle East: “I was surprised to see an almost immediate melting of sea ice covered by atmospheric rivers during the coldest months of the year in Antarctica.”
The research team said atmospheric rivers are carrying pockets of warm air to the Antarctic, which is adding to the melting of the South Pole ice.
Ms. Francis told New Scientist: “Atmospheric rivers also make storms more intense because they provide more water vapor. They are connected, not independent.”
Globally, at present, sea level is rising by around 8mm per year due to melting ice and climate change, and while that doesn’t sound like much, the implications for future generations could be enormous.
READ MORE: Archaeologists’ Shocking Finds About Antarctica’s “zombie” worms
If all of this ice melts, sea level will rise by a whopping seven meters, which could have major implications for the UK.
According to Google’s interactive FireTree map, if the sea level rises by seven meters, northern France will struggle while virtually all of the Netherlands will be submerged.
Flat Denmark would also become much smaller.
New York suffers a similar fate, while the Bahamas will be almost completely wiped out.
In Asia, many of the Philippine islands would disappear while the Polynesian islands, of which there are more than 1,000, would be submerged in Oceana.
Other large international cities such as Miami, Guangzhou and Tokyo would also become practically uninhabitable.
Closer to home, Britain becomes much narrower, particularly along the eastern part, thanks to a sea level rise of seven meters.
The hull is almost completely submerged while the areas east of Lincoln to east of Cambridge will cease to exist.
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