Hello!
I will tend to dismiss the "Einstein relativistic stuff" since i think it does not apply in this case. At least not significantly!
As a matter of fact there were a zillion things that were troubling me with the melting ice cap that i never went as far as the gravitational shift.
By my language its quite easy to conclude that i am from the ones like
cosmicpixiethat believe in the global warming. Some people think its a
natural process while others conclude that humans have greatly messed up the natural "flow" of things. I belong in the later category with little
reservation that is a natural phenomenon.
From recorded history and comparing to recent decades the rate of change does not add up any more. Nor does the accelerating rate of melting ice caps.
Many areas/fields are also dis-balanced (in my opinion) with chaotic and unpredictable consequences. The most noticeable ones are weather patterns and
temperature.
All kinds of pollution and Earth abuse by our immature civilisation, have even more perplexing consequences but that is another subject.
To cut a long story short:
We are responsible for this
MESS which
IS NOW a
REALITY. This is a living nightmare. A real thriller...
Moving on.... I tend to think that the best scenario to possibly consider is that the ice caps have and will again act as being a buffer absorbing
external factors. It used to be factors from beyond our atmosphere but as i said earlier i hold us humans today responsible as one of these factors,
at best...
I will let go of scenarios because the possibilities are chaotic whatever the case. I am not God, so i just don't know. If you asked me, i would
say:
I AM NOT EXPECTING GOOD NEWS...
On the specific scenario which seems to be soon a reality my insight goes as below:
Considering that ice has the same mass but greater volume than water per unit, the melt down of the arctic will shift water to replace ice in the
melted down areas. Consequently there will be an increase of mass in these areas (of whatever magnitude) and a decrease along the equator.
The immediate consequence of that will be that Earth should retain its rotational inertia. In order for that to be achieved the angular speed of
rotation will....decrease.
I guess that the above are pretty easy to follow although my English is getting rusty and i might have been able to put that down in a better way.
Whatever... I guess simple language as that is best for many.
Consider this now: We have started to play with gravity, rate of rotation, maybe a bunch of other things too.
(that i most certainly miss out just now, since i have to communicate my thoughts to you by typing and trying to keep a flow.)
GUESS WHAT!
These are already to many factors to mess things up big time.
I will try to put down a few of my thoughts as they spring out of my mind:
Maybe the slower rotation will change the interpretation of energy absorbance to our Planet from space. Consequence: At best weather will be much
different if not unrecognisable. Further consequences? TOO MANY
New York being flooded being the least significant one...
Change of pressure on the plates, as stated earlier, will occur with unpredictable behaviour. Imagine the case of earthquakes triggering a chain
reaction of movement until new balance is achieved. Further consequences? NIGHTMARE TO EVEN THINK ABOUT. Australia being tipped over in the process
being a possibility. (Just an example... Sorry...a harsh one indeed...)
Change of Earths rotational speed will also change the acceleration on the plates. Ok the plates will now move slower angularly, with smaller
centrifugal forces acting on them, making them in effect "heavier" to their underlying core.... Consequences? Brrrrr NIGHTMARE
I am just starting to lay out thoughts and i allready have the Earth's core involved...unintentionally indeed, but hey that's that and i wish i
could be proven wrong. I do not want to start depicting what the above mean in effect.
Now consider: I am not putting more factors in the equation although they are endless. What do you have above in this simple crude list?
New realities for gravity, temperatures, weather*, plate behaviour, water distribution, mass of water distribution, a new environment for Earths
core... etc... etc... etc... etc... etc... etc... etc... etc... etc...
duhhh probably even a melt down ice cap that its beyond its capacity to act as a buffer any more...
(*weather: wind, rain, atmospheric changes, space weather differently affecting the planet...etc...etc...etc... )
Now my friends you have a slice of the nightmare. In the process i think that i have given dear cosmicpixie my views in the wise questions which never
occurred to me. However consider this. I did not dig the above from any references or bibliography. I just thought of them and they seem logical when
applying basic science. There is no science that can control/predict exactly what will happen. Most probably there is no bibliography on a couple of
things i mentioned either.
Dear cosmicpixie!
I have enjoyed the read, since it gave me an even more complex way to view things. However this complexity we humans have created unnecessarily and
immaturely is not a joy anymore.
However i have spared a positive thought for the ending.
For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
Maybe things are not as bad. Lets just hope that the redistribution will not be as bad as we have been to the planet and our fellow
Earthlings.
King regards and love to all.
EDIT for wrong op referral
[edit on 16/5/2009 by GEORGETHEGREEK]