RossIce Shelf (Antarctica, 1997).Iceshelves partially rest on land, and partially float.  Sea ice is

RossIce Shelf (Antarctica, 1997).Iceshelves partially rest on land, and partially float.  Sea ice isbelieved to stabilize the edges of the ice shelves.  It is too thinto actually physically buttress the shelf, but intact sea ice canpreserve the cool conditions that stabilize a shelf.  Air massespassing over sea ice are cooler than over the open ocean, and sea icecan also suppress ocean waves that would otherwise flex the ice shelfand hasten its breakup.Iceshelves often calve icebergs, which is a natural process.  But manyice shelves are fed by glaciers, and when an ice shelf disintegrates,the glacier feeding it often accelerates.  This raises global sealevels.Seaice melt does not directly increase sea level, as the sea ice isalready displacing its own weight in the ocean.  But sea ice melt canindirectly lead to an increase in sea level.  Glacier accelerationhas already been observed on the the Antarctic Peninsula, which haswarmed significantly in recent decades. -- source link
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