By: Savannah Smalley (282)
Antarctica has a ticking time bomb in its sea that could raise global sea levels by several feet. This ‘time bomb,’ dubbed Doomsday glacier, is known as the Thwaites Glacier to scientists and has been put on a watch for years due to the rapid speed of its melting in the past years. Rising temperatures, an effect of global warming, are causing the Thwaites Glacier to hang by its fingernails, with each day bringing scientists more worry than the last. Because Thwaite is grounded to a seabed instead of dry land, similar to many other glaciers, it melts at a faster rate due to warm ocean currents being able to melt it from below. This glacier, which is bigger than the state of Florida, could raise sea levels up to sixteen feet and is predicted to put land the size of Houston underwater.
One of Central’s biology teachers, Mr. Fitzgerald, highlighted some interesting points about global warming. “The effects of global warming are much larger than just a single glacier,” said Mr. Fitzgerald. The effects of global warming extend into many issues that aren’t always thought about, such as “more severe weather, crop loss, and drinkable water scarcity, and as geographic ranges of mosquitoes and ticks expand, they can carry diseases to new locations.”
Students may be wondering how a melting glacier affects them here in Philadelphia. This is a good question to ask, and although it may not feel like it impacts you right now, the truth is that climate change affects everyone and is a global problem that requires international attention to see results. But as a teacher, Mr. Fitzgerald emphasizes that you utilize your voice by educating yourself and others about climate change and getting out to vote for people in support of fighting these problems. The Thwaites Glacier is not the end but the beginning of catastrophic events that will take place in the future if we don’t do our part in fighting climate change.
The Centralizer 