Glaciers in Antarctica on February 07, 2022. A new study suggests even if the world meets its climate targets it may not be enough to save the planet's ice sheets.
Share this @internewscast.com
The world’s ice sheets are on course for runaway melting, leading to multiple feet of sea level rise and “catastrophic” migration away from coastlines, even if the world pulls off the miraculous and keeps global warming to within 1.5 degrees Celsius, according to new research.

A group of international scientists set out to establish what a “safe limit” of warming would be for the survival of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.

They pored over studies that took data from satellites, climate models and evidence from the past, from things like ice cores, deep-sea sediments and even octopus DNA.

What they found painted a dire picture.

Glaciers in Antarctica on February 07, 2022. A new study suggests even if the world meets its climate targets it may not be enough to save the planet's ice sheets.
Glaciers in Antarctica on February 07, 2022. A new study suggests even if the world meets its climate targets it may not be enough to save the planet’s ice sheets. (Getty)

The world has pledged to restrict global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels to stave off the most catastrophic impacts of climate change.

However, not only is this limit speeding out of reach — the world is currently on track for up to 2.9 degrees of warming by 2100. But the most alarming finding of the study, published Tuesday in the journal Communications Earth and Environment, is that 1.5 might not even be good enough to save the ice sheets.

Even if the world sustains today’s level of warming, at 1.2 degrees, it could still trigger rapid ice sheet retreat and catastrophic sea level rise, the scientists found.

The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets together hold enough fresh water to raise global sea levels by around 65 metres — an unlikely scenario but one that must be acknowledged to fully understand the risk.

Since the 1990s, the amount of ice they’ve lost has quadrupled; they are currently losing around 370 billion tonnes a year. Ice sheet melting is the dominant contributor to rising seas and the rate of annual sea level rise has doubled over the past 30 years.

Ice floats near the coast of West Antarctica on October 28, 2016. Scientists are concerned the West Antarctic Ice Sheet may be in a state of irreversible decline directly contributing to rising sea levels.
Ice floats near the coast of West Antarctica on October 28, 2016. Scientists are concerned the West Antarctic Ice Sheet may be in a state of irreversible decline directly contributing to rising sea levels. (Getty)

Multiple studies suggest 1.5 degrees of warming is “far too high” to prevent rapid ice sheet retreat that would be irreversible on human timescales, and the world should prepare for many feet of sea level rise over the coming centuries, according to the study.

“You don’t slow sea level rise at 1.5, in fact, you see quite a rapid acceleration,” said Chris Stokes, a study author and glaciologist at Durham University.

It’s an existential threat to the world’s coastal populations. Around 230 million people live less than 1 metre above sea level. Even small changes in the amount of ice held in the ice sheets will “profoundly alter” global coastlines, displacing hundreds of millions of people and causing damage that stretches the limits of adaptation, the study found.

Seas could surge by 1 centimetre a year by the end of the century, within the lifetimes of young people now, the scientists found.

At this level, which equates to 1 metre a century, “you’re going to see massive land migration on scales that we’ve never witnessed since modern civilisation,” said Jonathan Bamber, a study author and glaciologist at the University of Bristol.

There are still huge uncertainties about where tipping points lie. The way climate change unfolds is not linear and it’s unclear exactly when warming might trigger rapid retreat and even collapse.

What’s hugely concerning, the study authors say, is that the best estimates of “safe” temperature thresholds for saving the ice sheets keep going down as scientists better understand their vulnerability to climate change.

Early modeling suggested temperatures would need to hit around 3 degrees of warming to destabilise the Greenland ice sheet, for example, but recent estimates suggest it would only take around 1.5 degrees.

To avoid the rapid collapse of one of more ice sheets means limiting global warming to closer to 1 degree above pre-industrial levels, the study authors concluded.

This would require drastic cuts to the amount of fossil fuels humans burn, something which looks exceptionally unlikely as countries including the US continue to embrace oil, coal and gas.

The world is already starting to see some of the worst-case scenarios play out in terms of ice loss, Stokes said.

“There’s very little that we’re observing that gives us hope here,” he said. “The absolute best-case scenario is that sea level rise is slow and steady,” he added.

The findings don’t mean the world should give up on climate targets, as every fraction of a degree of warming translates to worse impacts, Stokes said.

“Limiting warming to 1.5 will be a major achievement. It should absolutely be our target, but in no sense will it slow or stop sea level rise and melting ice sheets.”

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

The Albanese administration pushes forward with promise to limit prescription costs to $25

The Albanese government says it will introduce legislation this week to cap…
An investigation is under way into the shooting, which saw Troy Jacka killed outside a home on Stebonheath Road in Munno Para West.

Father’s Fatal Shooting Leaves Daughter Grieving

Exclusive: The daughter of a man who lost his life in a…
Gunman believed dead after police officer, civilians shot in Manhattan

Manhattan Shooting: Suspected Gunman Killed, Police Officer and Civilians Injured

A gunman is suspected to have died after opening fire on a…
US mother and 8-month-old daughter remain missing after 10 days

U.S. Mother and Her 8-Month-Old Baby Still Missing After 10 Days

Authorities and concerned relatives in California are actively searching for a mother…

Trump Claims Severe Hunger Exists in Gaza, Opposing Netanyahu’s Statements

US President Donald Trump has commented on the severe hunger situation in…

EU and US Reach Tariff Agreement to Prevent Escalating Trade Conflict

The United States reached a trade framework agreement with the European Union…
An Aussie with a TAFE IT Advanced Diploma shared the horror of seeing more than 900 people applying for just one entry level role on the job website SEEK

Small Job Ad Detail Reveals Major Issue in Pursuing Entry-Level Positions: ‘I Was Caught in This Pitfall’

Young Australians have expressed their frustration about competing with hundreds of other…
Federal government launches eeger

Government Allocates $10 Million to Jobseeker Platform Supporting Struggling Industries

The federal government has invested $10 million in a jobseeker platform aimed…
Chloé Höglund , 34, who is originally from New Zealand, has traveled over 8,000 miles across the US by train

My Solo 200-Hour Train Adventure Across America: The Unvarnished Truth

A woman who has traveled over 8,000 miles across the US by…

Israel Implements Daily Ceasefires in Gaza for Aid Deliveries via Airdrops

Israel announced a halt in military operations for 10 hours a day…
A controversial new fee for the Sydney New Year's Eve fireworks is being debated.

Sydney Council Discusses Admission Fee for New Year’s Eve Fireworks Event

A controversial new fee for the Sydney New Year’s Eve fireworks is…

To numerous Muslim women in Australia, encountering Islamophobia seems unavoidable

Dr Nora Amath, Executive Director of the Islamophobia Register, observed a “dramatic…