Fossil Fuel
GLOBAL WARMING AND
THE DOOMSDAY GLACIER
By Peter Solomon
The clock is ticking…
YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE TODAY
- 1. Walk or Ride Share.
- 2. Turn the thermostat up / down to save energy.
- 3. Turn out lights that are not in use.
- 4. Plant some trees
Why is the Thwaites Glacier called the Doomsday Glacier? It is because global warming is melting this monster mountain of ice that is the size of the state of Florida. The collapse of The Thwaites Glacier could lead to a sea level rise of over 2 feet. The subsequent melting of the ice shelf below Thwaites and other glacier losses could cause global mean sea-level to rise nearly 11 feet. Flooding of large areas of our current landmass will cause world chaos.
The Doomsday Glacier could be a final chapter in the story of fossil fuel technology. Coal was first burned in fireplaces 10,000 years ago. In the early 18th century it was used in steam engines. In 1859, the modern oil industry in America began when Edwin Drake drilled the first commercial oil well in Pennsylvania. In 1876, the first gasoline-fueled engine was built. In the 1880s, coal was first used to generate electricity for homes and factories.
These wonders of fossil fuel technology have produced more comfortable, warm, well-lit homes, factory production, and modern transportation. But the danger is global warming. The increased use of fossil fuels over the last two centuries has led to a 60 percent increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide. That molecule absorbs heat that is trying to escape Earth and sends half of it back. The result today is an increase of global temperatures of 1.6°C. Predictions for 2100 are as large as a 4°C increase. Our history suggests that our civilization will not have the capacity to deal rationally with the famines and population displacements caused by crop failures and sea level rise. This world chaos could lead to nuclear war.
At age 17, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg said: “Adults keep saying we owe it to the young people to give them hope, but I don’t want your hope. I don’t want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic. I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. I want you to act. I want you to act as you would in a crisis. I want you to act as if the house is on fire, because it is.”
In 2017, astrophysicist Stephen Hawking warned that humans would be extinct on Earth in 100 Years. The clock is ticking.
Please visit and follow https://www.instagram.com/100yearstoextinction/ and https://www.100yearstoextinction.com/ for more information on threats to human existence and to information and links to organizations fighting these threats.
