The Next ICE Age

[reisei]

Yes im aware theres already a post about global warming etc but this post im making focus's directly at the term "ice age"

just last year alone we have seen completely random drops and rise in temperatures at an alarming rate and completely unpredictable times, weve seen tsunami's, record amounts off earthquakes and disasters all over the world even australia is suffering major shocking floods not seen for over 50 years

The ice caps are melting and the known term "retreating" is going on, alot of this world doesnt seem to realise how realistic a movie like "the day after tomorrow" really is , or we realise it and choose to ignore it, how does the mind work in that area?

trying to avoid mass panic?, some scientists are saying we may see an ice age alot sooner than expect, somewhere at anytime in the next 100 years

http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2005/10/11/150032.shtml

heres an article on it, theres quite a phew articles the debate goes on, but what do you guys think off the "ice age"

[Ozme52]

Laffin.

I'm no big proponent of global warming extremism... and feel it is part of the natural cycle of the planet rather than a man-made phenomenon... but it is going to happen.

This article is correct only insofar as after the globe warms, it cools again. It's about as poorly written, circular, and obviously (imo) full of misdirection and miscontrued science. CO2 does NOT become moisture and does NOT fall as rain or snow. It can dissolve into water (H2O) in the air and come down with the rain but it is never a liquid (except under pressure.)

This is just a bunch of words Brennan put together to be controversial and earn some cash.

Seasonal temperature fluctuations in relationship to the weather are a constant and in and of themselves tell us nothing about the average temperature of the world.

But------------------

Did anyone note the good news for grizzly bears? Their habitats are enlarging and they're thriving right now.

[Thorne]

Laffin.

I'm no big proponent of global warming extremism... and feel it is part of the natural cycle of the planet rather than a man-made phenomenon... but it is going to happen.

This article is correct only insofar as after the globe warms, it cools again. It's about as poorly written, circular, and obviously (imo) full of misdirection and miscontrued science. CO2 does NOT become moisture and does NOT fall as rain or snow. It can dissolve into water (H2O) in the air and come down with the rain but it is never a liquid (except under pressure.)

This is just a bunch of words Brennan put together to be controversial and earn some cash.

Seasonal temperature fluctuations in relationship to the weather are a constant and in and of themselves tell us nothing about the average temperature of the world.
I agree with you here, Oz. The guy's just making noise. That comment about the CO2 becoming rain cost him any chance of credibility, in my book.


But------------------

Did anyone note the good news for grizzly bears? Their habitats are enlarging and they're thriving right now.
Yeah, but the polar bears are facing a rough go now. They are LOSING habitat. It's Mother Nature's lottery, that's for sure. Adapt or die.

[reisei]

Yea but that article was just an example, its not exactly what im talking about, im mostly talking about the idea of the ice age, when it will be and are we really going to wait to the last minute till something is actually done to realise how close we really are?

[Thorne]

Yea but that article was just an example, its not exactly what im talking about, im mostly talking about the idea of the ice age, when it will be and are we really going to wait to the last minute till something is actually done to realise how close we really are?

One problem with stories like "The Day After Tomorrow," which portrayed the start of an ice age happening within a matter of days, is that they make great movies but lousy science. The probability of something like that occurring would have to be so remote as to be virtually impossible.

One thing these alarmists fail to consider is the sheer inertia of the planet's ecosystem. The ocean is so vast that it would take decades for any changes to travel from one end of the globe to the other. The same with the atmosphere. And the whole planet works in harmony to dampen and minimize changes. An increase in CO2 will cause a rise in temperature, which causes an increase in evaporation of water, which causes an increase in cloud cover, which eventually causes an increase in rainfall which helps scrub the CO2 out of the atmosphere. This is VERY simplified, but it's a fairly close approximation. Higher temperatures will tend to cause more, and larger, hurricanes, which in turn cause temperatures to fall again.

True, we could reach a "tipping point" where the changes are so great that the ecosystem can no longer compensate properly. That will result in a new balance point eventually, either with a higher or lower average temperature. But it's not going to happen overnight.

As for waiting until the last minute, well, that's pretty much how the human race seems to work. Why give up our comforts and lifestyles for some obscure, unreachable future. Let our kids take care of that. They're the ones who will be affected, after all. Just like we have learned to live with the problems OUR parents passed on to us, our children will learn to live with those problems which WE pass on to THEM.

[Ozme52]

IYeah, but the polar bears are facing a rough go now. They are LOSING habitat. It's Mother Nature's lottery, that's for sure. Adapt or die.

Polar bears are grizzly bears that adapted to the expanding ice pack. It's just a cycle. If they all die out and the pack expands, there will be another version of them next time around too.

THAT is what we, civilized mankind, must ensure we don't inhibit by our activities.

[Thorne]

Polar bears are grizzly bears that adapted to the expanding ice pack. It's just a cycle. If they all die out and the pack expands, there will be another version of them next time around too.

THAT is what we, civilized mankind, must ensure we don't inhibit by our activities.

I agree with you. Thinking that the polar bears may die out because of something mankind has done is very simplistic. They will either adapt, evolve or become extinct. Just like any other species. Including humans!