The polar regions, being covered with snow, are the most vulnerable to global warming. Both the Arctic and Antarctica are undergoing major changes. In the specific case of Antarctica, ice-free zones will expand and they will end up coming together as the ice melts.
According to a new study by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD), which has been published in the journal Nature, by the end of the century in white paradise there could be around 25% less ice; that is would gain about 17.267 square kilometers of land.
For those who want to travel to Antarctica in the future, it will certainly be much easier than now. But, what consequences can this thaw have? Well, the most obvious one that we all know is the sea level rise. All that melting ice has to go somewhere, and obviously it goes to the ocean.
Towards the end of the millennium, planet Earth will be very, very different, as its seas they will have grown 30 meters, and for 10.000 years from now, when there is no snow left in Antarctica, this increase will be 60 meters as explained to the Sinc Agency the researcher at the Carnegie Institution fos Science (United States) Ken Caldeira.
In addition to the serious consequences it will have for the rest of the planet, in Antarctica both native and invasive species will spread. As always in nature, there will be a battle for survival, and obviously the best adapted will win. This means that some of the native species could become extinct.
Currently ice-free zones, ranging from one square kilometer to several thousand, are breeding areas for seals and seabirds, but they are also home to endemic invertebrates, fungi and lichens. In time, they could eventually colonize the entire continent, making us wonder if it will ever be green again. as it was 50 million years ago.