This article from Science Advances, an open-source, online journal created by the publishers of Science, asks a simple question: What would happen to the Antarctic ice sheets if the nations of the world used all of the presently known fossil fuel reserves? The answer? If the world uses all of the known reserves, including tar-sands oil and shale gas, approximately ten trillion tons of carbon will be released into the atmosphere. That amount of carbon would raise global temperatures enough to melt nearly all of the ice in Antarctica. In turn, sea levels would rise by approximately three meters (9.84 feet) per century over the next thousand years. Readers may like to begin by reading the paper's Abstract, which summarizes and outlines the findings. Various charts, figures, and maps round out the research and tell the story in stunning detail. Interested readers will also find a downloadable PDF of the article, which at five pages offers a nice, brief addition to course readings or a quick read over morning coffee.
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