The most significant changes would take place low-lying areas where flooding would occur. While flooding is often debated it will in fact take place if the polar ice caps melted. It is true that the North Pole would not cause flooding because this ice is floating in water. Therefore, this ice melting would not increase ocean levels. Where there is room for concern is in Antarctica and other land masses with significant ice coverage where the ice is not already contributing to ocean level. If this were all to melt it would run off into the oceans and dramatically change the sea level.
Rising sea levels would have a huge impact on ecosystems. First of all the salinity levels in the oceans could change and lead to loss of marine life. Depending on the high amount of change this could wipe out many species including those that are key stone species in food chains thus affecting fishing industries and human life. Also there would be a substantial amount of habitat loss in the Arctic and areas at low elevations. Many low lying countries, like island chains, could be completely under water.
Human life would be affected by the ice caps melting. Depending on the severity of flooding and other changes there may not be a viable food source for the planet. This can be taken into account by the loss of marine life and farmland.
As far as our science experiment is concerned I wonder if there would be some way to implement the factor of ice melting that is on land and not floating in the sea. Some additional questions I might consider are as follows:
- Is there a way to incorporate salinity testing / salinity changes into this experiment?
- What reading material could I use to engage students prior to beginning the experiment?
- What could be added to this experiment to induce further learning, analyzing or creating like the top tier of Blooms Taxonomy?
In all of my thinking about the affect of melting ice caps on shorelines, I hadn't thought out the effect of the amount of fresh water changing the salinity level of the oceans (70% of our fresh water is in the ice caps!)
ReplyDeleteI also found that the experiment was a little skewed because of being ice floating in water like an iceberg, which follows the displacement rules and would not effect the level of water. Great questions about adding the variables into this experiment, too.
It seems like there are so many scenarios that can be created for your students, from alternative energy that reduces greenhouse gases, to using information on melting ice caps to predict a trend of ocean levels over the next 10 years.
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DeleteSorry about this, I am having a hard time editing :)
DeleteI agree the changes in the salinity are very disturbing, as it may effect our deep ocean currents and our weather patterns.
Two books that I found as I researched were: What If the Polar Ice Caps Melt by Katherine Friedman, and Why Are The Polar Ice Caps Melting?:The Dangers of Global Warming by Anne Rockwell and Paul Meisel. Another option might be to incorporate some student friendly magazine articles
Regan - What a great topic! I have several questions regarding global warming. I am not sold on the theory yet. I know what is happening to the ice caps, especially the North Pole, but I believe it was mapped out this way ever since the end of the ice age.
ReplyDeleteYou asked about how to show what would happen when other ice melts like what is in Antarctica and Greenland. I was wondering if you just had another "ice berg" and slid it into the bowl of water. Or a pitcher of water to represent some of the water that has melted from ice on land that has run off into the sea. both would cause the bowl to overflow.
ReplyDeleteRegan- great post! Good point in the change in the salinity of the oceans. That is one point that I did not think about.I think that this is a great activity to do with a class. I think that they would have the misconceptions about the ice cubes melting and causing the glass to over flow. Global warming is an interesting subject and one that I am sure that would spark a great conversation/ debate in class.
ReplyDeleteI would like to hear more, Patrick, of what you mean. I'm confused.
ReplyDeleteRegan, I noticed two things in the experiment: 1) melting icebergs (ice floating in water) wouldn't do anything to the level of water existing (i.e., it wouldn't cause any flooding in low-lying areas), but what would change is the salinity of the ocean over time. As we know, salt levels in the ocean supports specific life and change the salinity; change the life. 2) when ice melts from glaciers and runs off into into rivers, then oceans, the oceans will rise. When icecaps break off and fall into the ocean, it is akin to putting more ice into a bowl of water that is already at capacity--it will flood. You probably already realized this, but I found issue with the experiment in that it dealt with two different things--perhaps in an attempt to get us discussing! (yayyy science!!)
Janie