Ellsworth American interviews Borns about predicted global sea level rise
The Ellsworth American spoke with Hal Borns, professor emeritus with the University of Maine Climate Change Institute and School of Earth and Climate Sciences, for the article, “Global sea level rise predictions double.” The article cites a study recently published in the journal Science that suggests global sea rise is happening faster than anyone thought, and it could drastically reshape the Maine seacoast and inundate major cities throughout the world by the end of the century. Borns was involved with some of the earliest studies of Antarctic glaciers, according to the article. He said the Antarctic ice sheets were outflows from glaciers on the continent, and they are anchored to the sea bottom. As the sea level rises, the ice sheet floats higher and the “grounding line retreats inland,” Borns said. As that happens, chunks of the shelf “the size of Rhode Island” break off the main glacier and float out to sea. The area above the water melts in the warm atmosphere and contributes to the increase in the sea level, the article states. “If the ocean keeps warming, it’s going to be self-perpetuating,” Borns said. “If nothing changes, it’s going to self-destruct.”