Antarctica Could Collapse in 100 Years, Scientists Say

Since 1995, explorers from the South Pole have been recording their observations that certain parts of Antarctica seem to be collapsing and breaking away from the main continents. If the predictions of scientists are correct, it is possible that one of Antarctica's large ice shelves will completely collapse in the next hundred years.  

A study published in Live Science has recorded a very long rift that has caused a massive breakage in the Pine Island Glacier, one of the largest glaciers in Western Antarctica, in 2015. According to scientists, the major cause of this collapse is the melting of the glaciers in the western ice shelves of Antarctica.

The study has also indicated that the further collapse of ice shelves will create a dramatic increase in international sea levels. This phenomenon could elevate sea water levels for as high as three meters and cause flooding of coastlines all over the globe.  

Just August of this year, there had been wide recordings of massive cracks along the borders of Antarctica. As shown from the records and studies published in Science Alert, it demonstrates that these cracks are hundreds of kilometers long from end to end and could possibly lead to breakage of ice islands larger than some American states. According to the study, the crack has been growing in length for more than five kilometers every month.

An anecdote reported in National Geographic narrated a first-hand experience of how a large portion of one of the ice shelves in Antarctica has broken off, and evidence found proves this is not the first time it has occurred.

It further indicated that engineers David DeConto from the University of Massachusetts and David Pollar from the Pennsylvania State University worked hand in hand to create the first computer model of Antarctic ice sheets in 2009.