Antarctica, now an enormous frozen continent, was not at all times lined in ice. Around 34 million years in the past, through the Eocene-Oligocene boundary, the continent was ice-free. According to Eric Wolff, a paleoclimatologist from the University of Cambridge, Antarctica resembled northern Canada with tundra and coniferous forests earlier than it froze. The shift to ice started because of a drop in carbon dioxide (CO2) ranges and the separation of South America from Antarctica, which opened the Drake Passage and remoted the continent, inflicting it to chill.
The Role of Carbon Dioxide
The drop in CO2 ranges performed an important position in freezing Antarctica. Tina van de Flierdt, a geochemist at Imperial College London, explains that the CO2 ranges have been considerably larger, round 1,000 to 2,000 components per million 50 million years in the past, in response to a Live Science report. As CO2 ranges decreased, world temperatures dropped, permitting ice sheets to kind. This cooling was important for the transition to the frozen state we see at this time.
Impact of Tectonic Movements
Alongside the CO2 drop, the separation of South America from Antarctica triggered modifications within the continent’s local weather. The formation of the Drake Passage allowed a circumpolar present to develop, stopping heat air from reaching Antarctica. This contributed to the continent’s cooling, as defined by Eric Wolff.
Oxygen Isotopes and Ice Formation
Scientists study oxygen isotopes in marine sediments to trace Antarctica’s ice formation. By analysing the ratio of oxygen-16 to oxygen-18, they’ll estimate when ice sheets first appeared on the continent. This technique offers perception into how Earth’s local weather modified hundreds of thousands of years in the past.
Will Antarctica Be Ice-Free Again?
Tina van de Flierdt reportedly warns that though the whole melting of Antarctica’s ice is unlikely, we must always try to restrict the present ice loss attributable to human exercise.
