Delaying future sea-level rise by storing water in Antarctica
Even if greenhouse gas emissions were stopped today, sea level would continue to rise for centuries, with the long-term sea-level commitment of a 2 °C warmer world significantly exceeding 2 m. In view of the potential implications for coastal populations and ecosystems worldwide, we investigate, fro...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2016-03-01
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| Series: | Earth System Dynamics |
| Online Access: | http://www.earth-syst-dynam.net/7/203/2016/esd-7-203-2016.pdf |
| Summary: | Even if greenhouse gas emissions were stopped today, sea level would
continue to rise for centuries, with the long-term sea-level commitment of a
2 °C warmer world significantly exceeding 2 m. In view of the potential
implications for coastal populations and ecosystems worldwide, we
investigate, from an ice-dynamic perspective, the possibility of delaying
sea-level rise by pumping ocean water onto the surface of the Antarctic ice
sheet. We find that due to wave propagation ice is discharged much faster
back into the ocean than would be expected from a pure advection with
surface velocities. The delay time depends strongly on the distance from the
coastline at which the additional mass is placed and less strongly on the
rate of sea-level rise that is mitigated. A millennium-scale storage of at
least 80 % of the additional ice requires placing it at a distance of at
least 700 km from the coastline. The pumping energy required to elevate the
potential energy of ocean water to mitigate the currently observed
3 mm yr<sup>−1</sup> will exceed 7 % of the current global primary energy supply. At the same time, the approach offers a comprehensive protection for entire
coastlines particularly including regions that cannot be protected by dikes. |
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| ISSN: | 2190-4979 2190-4987 |