Antarctica is known for its massive ice sheets, freezing temperatures, and natural beauty. One thing most people don’t think about when it comes to Antarctica is volcanos, but they should.
There are more than 130 known volcanos in the area, most of which are below the ice and inactive. Some, however, are active. For example, Mount Erebus has been erupting for decades.
One thing that researchers are concerned about is that as ice melts due to climate change, the volcanos hidden below may become active.
Somewhere between 12000 and 7000 years ago as the Earth emerged from the last ice age, volcanic activity increased by 2-6x. Scientists have theorized that this is because the massive amounts of pressure from the weight of the ice help to keep the gasses trapped safely below the surface.
As the ice melts, the volcanos can become active and erupt.
What is even more concerning is that if these volcanos start becoming active, they will melt more ice and release more greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. This can result in further increasing temperatures, which could cause even more of the ice in Antarctica to melt.
When more ice melts, more volcanos could become active, compounding the problem further.
Of course, as the ice melts, the sea levels will rise. If volcanos cause large chunks of ice to drop into the ocean, it could even cause rapid increases in sea level.
Virginie Pinel is the Research Director of Volcanology at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development. She commented to Polytechnique Insights:
“The difficulty in this field of study lies in the time scale. Volcanic systems are built up over several hundred thousand years, whereas climate change takes place over a few decades. We don’t yet have enough hindsight to have a clear vision of the changes underway in volcanic activity.”
Of course, there is no to know for sure whether ice melt from climate change will actually result in increased volcanic activity. If it does, it is also impossible to predict what specific impact it would have. The more research done in this area, however, can help experts to plan for any possibility.
Who knew Antarctica had so many volcanoes?
If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about the mysterious “pyramids” discovered in Antarctica. What are they?
