The Melting Ice Cap

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

May 1, 1998 / 4:25 PM EDT / CBS

CBS News and your reporter have devoted a lot of resources in recent months telling you about the El Nino phenomenon and the weird weather we've experienced all across our nation, from mudslides in California to tornadoes in the southeast, to a nearly snowless winter in many other places.

While we were having a mild winter here, it was also a warmer than usual summer in much of the southern hemisphere. So, it should come as no surprise that scientists are more worried than ever about the polar ice cap covering Antarctica.

Researchers say the giant Larsen B ice shelf near the South Pole is breaking up. A 75-square-mile section floated away in March. Other large chunks have broken off before, but experts say it's happening faster now.

Some think the Connecticut-sized sheet of ice will melt completely within the next two years. That would equal all the ice lost in the past two decades.

Now, if you're wondering why those of us in the United States - nearly half a world away - should care about ice in Antarctica, here's why. These ice shelves protect the continental ice cap and keep it from melting.

There are still other shelves intact, but if they also float away, many scientists say it will only be a matter of time until the entire ice cap begins to melt. If that happens, people around the world will surely notice.

The ice cap contains 70 percent of the world's fresh water. If it begins melting, some researchers say ocean level could rise worldwide by about 15 feet over the next several decades.

That would cause severe flooding in coastal communities. Many low-lying places would simply be wiped out. That so-called hundred year flood would start raging through on a regular basis.

There would likely be changing weather patterns too, with more hurricanes in some places and more drought in others. If the ice cap were to continue to melt, ocean levels would continue to rise.

It might take 500 years or more for the ice cap to completely disappear, but our children and grandchildren would start to see the effects long before that.

While some experts say there's nothing to be concerned about that these are just normal weather patterns, others insist it's a result of global warming. They blame excess emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases generated by everything from cars to power stations. If they're right, government leaders will have to move faster to protect our environment.