Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Big Freeze: Earth Could Plunge Into Sudden Ice Age

Topographic map of the Nordic Seas and Subpolar Basins, with schematic circulation of surface currents (solid curves) and deep currents (dashed curves) that form a portion of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (MOC). The color of the curves depicts their approximate temperatures. Map inset shows the boundaries of the Nordic Seas and Subpolar Basins used in the analysis of water volume. Credit: Jack Cook, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

From Live Science:

In the film, "The Day After Tomorrow," the world gets gripped in ice within the span of just a few weeks. Now research now suggests an eerily similar event might indeed have occurred in the past.

Looking ahead to the future, there is no reason why such a freeze shouldn't happen again — and in ironic fashion it could be precipitated if ongoing changes in climate force the Greenland ice sheet to suddenly melt, scientists say.

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