Sobering graphics to scale: ice sheets 21,000 years ago versus today’s skylines.
“Data adapted from ‘The Laurentide and Innuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum’ by A.S. Dyke et. al., which was way better than the sequels ‘The Laurentide and Innuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum: The Meltdown’ and ‘The Laurentide and Innuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum: Continental Drift’.”
h/t to reader “View from the Solent”
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And if it happens again, they’ll blame global warming, right?
The next period of glaciation will start with just one snow flake, and it could very easily last for 90,000 years. Perhaps historians thousands of years in the future will call the next glaciation period, the Gore Ice Age – if they have a sense of humour, that is.
I was duly impressed when I learned that the top of Mt Washington, now 6,288 feet above sea level, was under a mile of ice not very long ago.
In a lot of the White Mountains the top soil is about three inches deep.
Probably off by a factor of four.
More like 3000 metres deep of ice sheets.
Now, that’s what I call a change 3.2% change in sea level! Stable but deadly.
Looks like a great place to build wind farms.
Usually XKCD cartoons have title text on the image, so if you hover the mouse over the image on the XKCD site itself you get to see some extra textual humour.
For this cartoon, the title text is:
“Data adapted from ‘The Laurentide and Innuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum’ by A.S. Dyke et. al., which was way better than the sequels ‘The Laurentide and Innuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum: The Meltdown’ and ‘The Laurentide and Innuitian ice sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum: Continental Drift’.”
Most of North America is now hundreds of feet higher than it was with all the ice on it. Once it melted the weight was removed and the rebound took effect.
That is one nice piece of artwork. I’m adding it to my collection. Nicely done.
An inconvenient truth?
I prefer it a tad warmer than that myself.
Yikes!
More CO2 please!
It is going to take one heck of a lot of bourbon and gin to use up that much ice. I’ll do my bit, but we are going to need entire corps of professional drinkers to chip that much down. Start training immediately!
This cartoon will get expanded and placed in the back window of my truck, for Seattle commuters behind me to enjoy at red lights.
Top caption to read: Global Warming?
Bottom caption to read: It’s A Good Thing!!!?
MtK
Chilling!
Randall_G says:
June 14, 2013 at 5:49 pm
I’m willing to do my share, Randall!
I’ve trained rigorously for +40 years!
MtK
It was all Bush’s fault.
Add Fresca, a bit of sweetened lime, and gold Tequila to that ice, rim with salt, and you have my attention. Will start practicing right now!
We’re buried like that now – but it ain’t under ice. You might say we’re inturd. 😉
In the last glaciation period, Canada was totally covered with an ice sheet ranging from 1 mile to 2 miles thick. Canada is 3.8 million square miles in area. I wonder how the polar bears survived then because there could not have been much sea ice to bounce around on since everything was frozen solid, everywhere in the north. I guess they must have hung out in the Gulf of Mexico.
Wait – this is a bit hard to believe. Where does all of that water come from?
Mark and two Cats says (June 14, 2013 at 6:13 pm): “We’re buried like that now – but it ain’t under ice. You might say we’re inturd. ;)”
And it’s getting deeper every day. 🙂
thelastdemocrat says (June 14, 2013 at 6:44 pm): “Wait – this is a bit hard to believe. Where does all of that water come from?”
It’s hiding in the deep ocean! 🙂
Go Home says:
June 14, 2013 at 4:53 pm
Looks like a great place to build wind farms.
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We could pour gas/petrol on them and use the running water to for hydro power!!
Oh wait ….. never mind. ; )
I don’t think there is any dispute that we are at the end of the Holocene based on earth’s current obliquity (Milankovitch theory) or geologic past interglacial durations (earth history). It could also be argued that obliquity during the LIA might have been nearly at the point also, but maybe other factors may have prevented its end (cosmic rays not being favorable or other factors?) So, I am wondering if this might be the point of regime change, with the sun going quiet and the ocean cycles going negative. Any brave souls out there that has a tea leaf read on it or, even better, reasons?
Jim wonders what the polar bears did for sea ice, I wonder what the fish in the ocean did. Was there even an ocean??