Understanding Antarctic ice sheet changes
The West Antarctic Ice Sheet was able to re-grow after shrinking but the process is not fast enough to combat the impact of today's climate change, according to research involving Durham University. The research 000 years ago the West Antarctic Ice Sheet shrank to a size even smaller than today but managed to re-grow to its current size thanks to uplifting of the seafloor as the weight of the ice became less. However, the uplift process takes thousands of years so is unlikely to work quick enough to save today's ice sheets from melting and causing seas to rise, which is happening at a much faster rate. Climate change predictions The international team of scientists say their results could help to refine predictions about how today's warming climate will impact polar ice and sea-level rise over longer timescales - over thousands of years. Since the end of the last Ice Age around 15,000 years ago, the earth has been warming, the seas rising and the ice sheets generally getting smaller. The current study found that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet shrank more than anyone suspected with its leading edge retreating 200km further inland than where it is today. Since retreating, the findings show it managed to re-grow.
