posted on Mar, 31 2007 @ 03:30 PM
What about the fact that fresh water mixing with salt water lowers the salinity, thus slowing the current which we depend on for our weather
patterns?
Not to mention the PH ballance and salinity ballance that marine life depend on staying stable.
I am a hobbiest in reef aquariums, and I can tell you these factors are very delicate to keeping marine life alive.
The ice creates a shelf by gathering snow fall each year which in combination with chilling the surrounding water makes the ice thicker, removing
fresh water from the ocean.
If the ice is not there or has less surface area to collect the falling snow, then the snow which is fresh water will simply melt in the ocean.
These things could contribute to global warming. Less reflective than snow, open ocean also absorbs the suns heat, where the snow, if it was not
broken up by ice breaker ships would have allowed more sun light to reflect back into space, thus controling the amount of heat the earth absorbs in
the winter time.
imo, this theory should be climatology 101