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Polar ice loss warps the shape of Earth
When we think of our planet Earth, we like to think of it as a solid object that we can’t really mess up. Unfortunately, the Earth is neither solid, nor too large for us humans to be able to change.
Fun Fact: When the massive Three Gorges Dam in China was filled with water, it actually slowed the Earth’s rotation down by changing the planet’s distribution of mass. The change was only a fraction of a microsecond, but… Every time we change the distribution of water on the planet’s surface, we change how the planet rotates. We also change how the crust of the planet beneath that water is shaped.
And here is your regular reminder that water comes in many forms, including ice and snow that can build up over centuries and melt away over years.
Here’s another fun fact: Volcanoes in icy climates erupt more often after a thaw.
It turns out the weight of snow and ice on the crust of our world is enough to shape our planet, like heavy books set on a memory foam mattress.
And today, with that snow and ice and oh so many glaciers melting, the weight of the world is being redistributed.
According to a new paper in Geophysical Research Letters and led by Sophie Coulson, This melting is causing changes in the 3-D shape of the Earth’s crust to an extent that we…
