Iceberg armada heads for NZ

An armada of icebergs heading toward New Zealand would have come from an iceberg more than 100 kilometres wide and 1500 metres deep, scientists say. At the moment, the icebergs were of such a size they could not drift close to the coast. If they broke up so they did not extend so deep in the water, they might drift to within 100 kilometres, and then could be seen from the mainland.



I am wondering how do the know this isn't a result of Global Warming? Ok we've only been In Antarctica for 100 years, but this is quite big. Or does this happen all the time?

Related News Links:
tvnz.co.nz

[edit on 6/11/2006 by rai76]

[edit on 6-11-2006 by DontTreadOnMe]

This seems important. Any more info?

The article says, " a mammoth piece of ice broke off the Ross or Amery ice shelves in Antarctica."

That's big news in environmental circles. How big? When? Why wasn't it noticed before the "armada of icebergs" headed for New Zealand?

Pfft not related to global warming.


We are all eggs in a pot simmering away, hope governments realise it before we all end up hard boiled.

Originally posted by NumberCruncher
Pfft not related to global warming.

???

That's the traditional understanding when large ice shelves or pieces of shelves break off.

Do you have sources to back up your statement?

We are all eggs in a pot simmering away, hope governments realise it before we all end up hard boiled.

They realise. They're positioning.


.

I know large Bergs breakfree, so no i dont have sources to back up my personal opinion, but it certainly isnt hard to summise that these bergs are becoming more frequent because of Warming.

Heaps of info out there about huge Bergs breaking off Antartica, i for one dont by the its " Natural" story.

Hers a nice article BERGS

What's eating Antarctica? In March 2000, an 11,000-square-kilometer iceberg the size of Connecticut split from the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica. Two months later, a similar area of ice broke free from the continent's Ronne Ice Shelf. Three months after that, the Ninnis Glacier Tongue, a 1,450 sq-km slab of ice jutting into the sea, snapped off near the shoreline and cast off for warmer climes.

At this rate maybe my country hideaway will become prime waterfront realestate hey ?

here's another interesting read about Icebergs and New Zealand.

From icebergs to pongas: Antarctica's ocean link with New Zealand

Although an ocean apart, Antarctica exerts an icy control on the waters flowing past New Zealand, with effects that are felt from the coast to the deep ocean.

Ever since James Cook sailed deep into Antarctic waters on his second voyage of 1772–75, New Zealand has kept close ties with the “White Continent”. Ross, Shackleton, Scott, Hillary and others relied on New Zealand to help them mount expeditions to the ice. But New Zealand has also fostered exploration and scientific research of its own, particularly with the building of Scott Base in 1957. Such historical links span 230 years, but environmental ties extend far down the path of geological time.

Read the article, it's pritty interesting.

www.niwascience.co.nz...

I read somewere that these Iceberg broke off in 2000 from the Ronne ice Shelf that was named A-43. It broke into pieces and they think that they are parent the one's that move toward NZ.

The icebergs are expected to melt or collapse before reaching the New Zealand coast.

But you wonder if they are after such a long time still that big how close would they come to NZ and what could they do?

Here you find a picture




Link to photo

[edit on 7/11/2006 by rai76]

Originally posted by rai76
I am wondering how do the know this isn't a result of Global Warming?

Taking a wild stab here but maybe because the comment was made by a "National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research oceanographer". Certainly he is far more qualified to make that kind of a statement than you or I are.

Another give away for me was the term "Experts believe...".

Definition: Expert: a person who has special skill or knowledge in some particular field; specialist

Pokey Oats

Originally posted by Pokey Oats

Originally posted by rai76
I am wondering how do the know this isn't a result of Global Warming?

Taking a wild stab here but maybe because the comment was made by a "National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research oceanographer". Certainly he is far more qualified to make that kind of a statement than you or I are.

Another give away for me was the term "Experts believe...".

Definition: Expert: a person who has special skill or knowledge in some particular field; specialist

Pokey Oats

I agree with you, but one can still wonder

Also as I said it will be very interesting to see how far they could reach to NZ and what will happen to them. I know they say the believe them to melt before reaching to coast, but if you know how long they are already on their way and they are still that big.....

Here you find some recent pictures from some of the icebergs

Originally posted by rai76
I agree with you, but one can still wonder

Also as I said it will be very interesting to see how far they could reach to NZ and what will happen to them. I know they say the believe them to melt before reaching to coast, but if you know how long they are already on their way and they are still that big.....

I can pretty much guarantee that they'll be all very melty and won't make it anywhere near the coast. I'm quite confident in saying this because I grew up in Australia and lived there for 30 years.

This time of year summer is almost upon them and I can assure you that it gets very warm down south.

But it might get exciting for the New Zulunduhs, I mean New Zealanders!

(I'll have sux pucks of fush and chups thanks bro, make that with an ICEE!)
Pokey Oats

So NIWA policies now say that the ice shelves' disintegration is NOT caused by global warming?

And we are to believe these icebergs were seen from the Chatham Islands in the late 1800s, and from the mainland in 1931 - but will likely melt before the week is up, although global warming is not a factor?

Giant icebergs clog shipping lane

National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research marine physicist Mike Williams said some of the icebergs could be big enough to last another week of their journey towards the east coast.

He said they might be from the Ross Sea or Prydz Bay ice shelves and were most likely helped north by a consistent pattern of southerly winds. ...They might also have been part of one or two ``megabergs'' that disintegrated as they drifted into warmer water.

They were seen as far north as the Chatham Islands in the late 1800s, and were last seen from the mainland in 1931, from a beach near Dunedin.

wtf? ...or am I missing something here?


.

Originally posted by soficrow
And we are to believe these icebergs were seen from the Chatham Islands in the late 1800s, and from the mainland in 1931 - but will likely melt before the week is up, although global warming is not a factor?

He did say that the Icebergs may make it far enough to be visible from the Mainland.

But seriously, it's hot down there and the only places you get snow are at very high altitudes on mountains. Trust me every kid that grows up down under is constantly envious of British/Ameican scenery all covered in a white wintery blanket of snow.

At sea level it's always really warm and for the most part you're wearing T-shirts all year round. Yes, even in the middle of winter if it's not cloudy and the sun is out.

It's not a matter of Global Warming, you just need to live down there for 1 or 2 years to realize that it's a completely different climate to the Northern Hemisphere.

Pokey Oats

The icebergs are old, and have (as reported this morning on Nttional Radio) already circumnavigated around Antarctica.

It's a bit dry in the Mainland, they could tow it there.

Originally posted by Mr Gunter
The icebergs are old, and have (as reported this morning on Nttional Radio) already circumnavigated around Antarctica.

It's a bit dry in the Mainland, they could tow it there.

But 'old' meaning what?

Does anyone have any hard information on this group of icebergs? Is it really a group that circumnavigated Antarctica for over a century, then got blown by a storm into the shipping lanes/warmer currents? Does anyone know for sure?

...I understood that Williams was guessing - and just deflecting attention from the global warming issue.

Originally posted by soficrow
Does anyone have any hard information on this group of icebergs? Is it really a group that circumnavigated Antarctica for over a century, then got blown by a storm into the shipping lanes/warmer currents? Does anyone know for sure?

...I understood that Williams was guessing - and just deflecting attention from the global warming issue.

That is not what he said. He was refering to 3 different unrelated events. Sometimes prior events can give a clue about current events. If you re-read you will see he did not say that a group of icebergs "circumnavigated Antarctica for over a century, then got blown by a storm into the shipping lanes/warmer currents". He was refering to past sightings to show that this may be a common occurence.

A 100 years of data is all but worthless when studying this type of event. Anyone drawing a conclusion based on so little data would be dishonest to say the least. Mixing politics and science is a ridiculous notion. It can only lead to junk science. Since science and politics have blended it is leading us back to the days when the Earth was believed to be flat. Scientists are loosing their credibility and no good can ever come from that.

What do we (they) know?

The Earth is experiencing a slight warming trend based on short term data.
We have no long term data to use for comparison.

The activities of humans may or may not be a large factor in this and may be such a minor factor as to be meaningless.

There is evidence that other planets in our system are also warming slightly during this same period of history which may indicate a cause unrelated to human activity.

Politicians want to use this data to influence elections.

Some in the science community have sold out to the politicians or are gaining financially by scaring people into buying books based on facts that are not proven.

Some in the scientific community are willing to exagerate what they know to further their own political agenda.

Some in the scientific community fancy themselves psychics who have knowledge they can not back up with evidence or facts.

Scientists are lying about what they know on both sides of the arguement.


What I get from this is that the scientific community has been bastardized by politics and their conclusions don't have any merit because of their personal bias. Anything they say about an issue clouded by politics can not be trusted and neither can the scientists involved. Science should be conducted without the interference of politics or economics for it to have any value. Any article not authored by the person doing the research is probably so biased as to be of no use in proving anything about anything. Science is neither left or right wing and anyone who can not keep politics out of their research is not fit to do the research. They are nothing but scientific heretics and political whores passing themselves off as experts. What scares me the most is many of these whores are teaching our children. Think about the consequences of that for a moment! A giant leap backwards into the Dark Ages!

Has any one menchened, or considered what the large sheets of ice could do to the watter temp. of the ocean?
As I recall changeing the temp of the ocean watter does have a large effect on climent.

These icebergs floating around south of us have happened before - many years ago. So - that being said, how can they be attributed to global warming?
Doesn't make sense. If it was the first time it'd happened - maybe, but it ain't.

The fush & chups are great Pokey Oats And we don't wear
t-shirts year round lol hell, I'm in christchurch down south and I
own skivvies & thermals! - bro! ;-) I'd agree the weather is extremely
different to the Nthn hemisphere - lived up yonder for several years -
too hot in the US!

I'm hoping they'll get close - I'll be down taking photos!!!