Quote:
Originally Posted by Robbie
How are Ice Caps melting going to raise the ocean level?
Just asking.
I'm not a scientist and have no "side" in this battle. But don't the ice caps already float on the water? I do know that they have used pictures of polar bears floating away on pieces that became detached right?
So if it's already on the water...there will be no change in volume when the thing melts. At least that seems logical to me.
If I take a glass and fill it with ice cubes, and then fill it to the top with water...it isn't gonna overflow when the ice melts. It's the same volume.
Am I just being too simplistic with that line of thinking?
Or are they saying that when ice that is on land mass melts and goes into the ocean it will cause the ocean to rise?
Just asking because I've read people saying that when all these icebergs melt the ocean will rise. And icebergs are floating in the water already.
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You're not taking into account the difference in density between fresh water and salt water. Typically an object immersed in a fluid is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid it displaces. However, freshwater is not as dense as saltwater, freshwater actually has greater volume than an equivalent weight of saltwater. Thus, when freshwater ice melts in the ocean, it contributes a greater volume of melt water than it originally displaced.