Abstract
Creep or shear heating instability is shown to be a plausible means of initiating a surge of the East Antarctic ice sheet and plunging the Earth into an ice age. The occurrence of this instability requires only that the ice thickness exceed a critical value which may not be much larger than the present ice dome thickness. Creep instability can occur on the fast time scale of 100–1,000 yr required by inferences of past rapid cooling events and sudden rises of sea level before the onset of Northern Hemisphere glaciations.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.