The sun will be around for approximately another 5 Billion years; at which point it will expand outward to about where Jupiter is. Until then, we can predict the general trend. It is a fusion reactor, all fueled up and pumping out the energy, transmitting it for free - and it is the single largest source of energy - that already supports all life everywhere, all the time.
The moon orbiting the earth is the other major source of energy, and eventually, the ocean tides will dampen the earth's oscillation (equal and opposite to the moon orbiting) - until the moon moves away from the earth too much to stay in orbit, and it flings away ...
The earth's tectonic plates will be affected by the melting ice caps and the warming oceans, too. This is because the mass of the ice caps presses the earth down under them, by a fair bit. Antarctica is being pressed down by almost 1/2 mile. Warmer water is less dense, and it will be spread out more (covering more land) so it will exert slightly less pressure on the earth under it, and this cannot help from changing the forces on the tectonic plates.
Also, the mass of the ice caps, and large mountain ranges, affect the gravitational pull of those areas of the earth - and they raise the ocean level around them. This is why the oblate spheroid the spinning earth forms is "sagging" toward the southern hemisphere - Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador is actually closer to space/farther from the center of the earth than Mount Everest, because of the "extra" gravitational pull of the ice on Antarctica.
The 'Highest' Spot on Earth?
Guess what? Once Antarctica's ice melts (and it sure looks like it will - if we humans don't use our big brains and stop burning fossil fuels!) - then not only will climate change raise the ocean level by hundreds of feet, it will change the shape of the earth, which will change the pressures on the tectonic plates - it will also affect spin of the earth and the orbit of the moon, too.
The moon orbiting the earth is the other major source of energy, and eventually, the ocean tides will dampen the earth's oscillation (equal and opposite to the moon orbiting) - until the moon moves away from the earth too much to stay in orbit, and it flings away ...
The earth's tectonic plates will be affected by the melting ice caps and the warming oceans, too. This is because the mass of the ice caps presses the earth down under them, by a fair bit. Antarctica is being pressed down by almost 1/2 mile. Warmer water is less dense, and it will be spread out more (covering more land) so it will exert slightly less pressure on the earth under it, and this cannot help from changing the forces on the tectonic plates.
Also, the mass of the ice caps, and large mountain ranges, affect the gravitational pull of those areas of the earth - and they raise the ocean level around them. This is why the oblate spheroid the spinning earth forms is "sagging" toward the southern hemisphere - Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador is actually closer to space/farther from the center of the earth than Mount Everest, because of the "extra" gravitational pull of the ice on Antarctica.
The 'Highest' Spot on Earth?
Guess what? Once Antarctica's ice melts (and it sure looks like it will - if we humans don't use our big brains and stop burning fossil fuels!) - then not only will climate change raise the ocean level by hundreds of feet, it will change the shape of the earth, which will change the pressures on the tectonic plates - it will also affect spin of the earth and the orbit of the moon, too.
''We, as a species, are in the unique situation , of not only being able to witness, but also being the cause of our own Extinction !'' ~~me~~
ReplyDeleteLet's hope we "wake up" before that happens.
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