Could a Prehistoric Meltdown Explain North America's Big Freeze?

  • Thread starter Ivan Seeking
  • Start date
In summary: Seriously? The article seems to be saying that a meltdown of the polar ice sheet caused a flood that caused a deep freeze over North America. But then the article says that the "empty lake" flooded the Atlantic. Which is it? Did the meltdown cause the flood, or did the flood cause the meltdown?
  • #1
Ivan Seeking
Staff Emeritus
Science Advisor
Gold Member
8,142
1,756
Meltdown blamed for big freeze
December 13, 2004
BY GARY WISBY Environment Reporter

Talk about a climate change: A University of Illinois at Chicago professor says he has found new evidence that a massive meltdown of polar ice 8,200 years ago put North America into a deep freeze for a century.

The "most dramatic climate change in the last 10,000 years" followed a flood of fresh water from a glacial reservoir into the salty water of the Gulf Stream, which controls our continent's weather. That led to a 43-degree temperature drop, said UIC's Torbjorn Tornqvist. [continued]
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-flood13.html
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Earth sciences news on Phys.org
  • #2
Interesting.
Tell me, has much evidence been left of the rate at which the climate warmed again after the event? Last I heard, it was hypothesised that the amount of energy required to re establish normal ocean circulation would be huge, and would take a very long time before the north atlantic drift could re establish itself. If it hasn't already, this could provide a good oppertunity to study the re establishment of the gulf stream after such an event. Any link to the research for this would be appreciated.
 
Last edited:
  • #3
No, it was the heaviest Clathrate gun event that was ever recorded.

Storegga, Norwegian margin 8150 years BP A estimated 3500 kubic kilometres of Clathrate was converted to 160 time that space in Methane gas. It is reported by Jansen et al. (1987), Evans et al. (1996), Bouriak et al. (2000), Bryn et al. (2003)

And this is the source: table on page 2 (54)
http://www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/~mmaslin/publications/Maslin1.pdf
 
  • #4
Reading that article again. I'm not impressed. There are a few strange things going on.

For instance:

Scientists believe the flood's source was a glacial reservoir called Lake Agassiz, holding twice the volume of the Caspian Sea in Eurasia, the world's largest inland sea.

According to this theory, all that fresh water gushed into the North Atlantic. There it mixed with the salty waters of the Gulf Stream.

The flooding mechanism is not mentioned in the article but for Lake Agasiz it is assumed failure of ice dams.

http://www.eos.ubc.ca/research/glaciology/Research/IceDam.html
And:

A University of Illinois at Chicago professor says he has found new evidence that a massive meltdown of polar ice 8,200 years ago put North America into a deep freeze for a century.

There is a huge problem however:

http://www.winona.msus.edu/geology/MRW/lecture12.html

By 9,000 yrs. b.p. Lake Agassiz was drained.

An empty lake flooded the Atlantic?
 
Last edited by a moderator:

1. What is causing North America's deep freeze?

The deep freeze in North America is caused by a polar vortex, which is a large area of low pressure and cold air that is usually located over the polar regions. This vortex has shifted and expanded, causing frigid air to move further south into North America.

2. How long is this deep freeze expected to last?

The duration of the deep freeze varies depending on the location, but it is expected to last for several days to a week in most areas. As the polar vortex weakens and shifts, the cold air will eventually move out of North America.

3. Are these temperatures considered unusual for North America?

While extreme temperatures are not uncommon in North America, the severity and extent of this deep freeze is unusual. It is being called the coldest Arctic outbreak in the past two decades, with some areas experiencing record-breaking low temperatures.

4. How does this deep freeze affect daily life in North America?

The deep freeze can have significant impacts on daily life in North America, including school closures, flight cancellations, and hazardous road conditions. It can also put a strain on energy resources as people use more heat to stay warm.

5. Is climate change to blame for this deep freeze?

The polar vortex and resulting deep freeze are natural weather patterns and not directly caused by climate change. However, some scientists believe that the warming of the Arctic due to climate change may be disrupting the polar vortex and contributing to more frequent and severe winter weather events in North America.

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top