Icebergs and Climate Change | How fresh water affects the ocean

What would happen if we dumped 300 gigatons of fresh water into the ocean? That's what is happening around the Greenland ice sheet every year. Glaciers are melting and losing ice at a rate that outpaces the annual snowfall. Freshwater icebergs calve off glaciers and float out to the ocean while slowly melting, creating unique ecosystems and affecting ocean currents. Oceanographer Dave Sutherland noticed that glaciologists don't study icebergs because they are no longer part of the glacier. Oceanographers don't study icebergs because they are ice. Dave's research is bridging that gap. Dave Sutherland is affiliated with the UO’s Environment Initiative, which focuses the intellectual energy and work of faculty members, students and community partners on working toward a just and livable future through transdisciplinary research, teaching and experiential learning. It is one of the UO’s five Academic Initiatives that work across disciplines, developing the next generation of leaders and problem solvers.

Source: University of Oregon
Length: 00:05:40
Country: United States
Language: English
Date: 23.02.2022