Sandy debris pulled up from icebergs sugget that Antarctica's giant glaciers respond to a warming climate with pulses of quick withdrawal as opposed to a gradual retreat. Antarctica's melting glaciers launched so many icebergs into the ocean 14,600 years ago that sea level rose 6.5 feet (2 meters) in just 100 years, a new study reports. The results are the first direct evidence for dramatic melting in Antarctica's past — the same as predictions for its future. "The Antarctic Ice Sheet had been considered to be fairly stable and kind of boring in how it retreated," said study co-author Peter Clark, a climate scientist at Oregon State University. "This shows the ice sheet is much more dynamic and episodic, and contributes to rapid sea-level rise." Read more: http://www.livescience.com/45926-antarctica-past-melting-sea-level-rise.html#ixzz338U7lTdO
