Scientists have made a shocking discovery in Antarctica that has climate change deniers claiming there’s now proof global warming is just a hoax.
Researchers from Tongji University in Shanghai found the frozen continent suddenly reversed its decades-long trend of catastrophic melting and actually gained record amounts of ice in recent years.
Although the Antarctic Ice Sheet had been losing ice at an alarming rate for nearly two decades, between 2002 and 2020, that trend sharply changed in 2021.
From 2021 through 2023, the study found unusually ‘intense snowfall’ in Antarctica helped build up layers of fresh ice, an event that also caused sea level rise to slow as well.
The world’s sea levels have been growing in height as ocean temperatures rise and more glaciers melt due to global warming, threatening to flood major coastal cities worldwide.
Overall, scientists found that this three-year climate reversal cut the annual rise in global sea level rise by nearly 15 percent, a significant difference.
Before this recent change in Antarctica, the study calculated that the ice sheet lost about 120 billion tons of ice per year over the previous two decades. Between 2021 and 2023, the continent gained roughly 108 billion tons of ice each year.
While the researchers noted that the surprising results only reflect a temporary change in Antarctica’s weather patterns that could eventually change back, climate change skeptics quickly pounced on the findings on social media.
Researchers from Tongji University discovered a 3-year trend where ice was growing back in Antarctica at a historic pace
Before this recent change in Antarctica, the study calculated that the ice sheet lost about 120 billion tons of ice per year
‘Ice grew in Antarctica! Climate change is a hoax!’ one person said on X.
‘LOL, climate crisis my butt. Antarctica has more ice now than ever before,’ another climate skeptic wrote.
‘Climate Crisis?’ You mean that there is too much ice building in Antarctica?’ a sarcastic X user added.
The scientists who made the discovery found that, between 2021 and 2023, abnormal weather patterns brought more moisture to the continent, especially the Eastern half of Antarctica.
These patterns were likely caused by shifts in winds or storms, possibly influenced by climate changes, but the study authors made sure to note that this change was an ‘unprecedented’ event.
Despite the historic gains in ice growth throughout Antarctica from 2021 to 2023, the study revealed that the continent suffered a net loss of 1.848 trillion tons of ice over the last two decades.
This ice loss added about 5.99 millimeters (roughly a quarter of an inch) to global sea levels by February 2020.
The connection between snow melting and sea level rise has real consequences. Rising sea levels can flood coastal cities, erode beaches, and harm ecosystems.
Recent studies have argued that climate change is the major driving factor for flooding problems in major cities like New Orleans, which is now sinking as that entire Gulf Coast area erodes.
In fact, climate scientists have warned that the rising sea levels triggered by melting Antarctic glaciers has now put over two dozen cities at higher risk of sinking over the next three decades.
The study revealed that the Antarctic Ice Sheet suffered a net loss of 1.848 trillion tons of ice over the last two decades
Despite the evidence that climate change is doing widespread damage, a University of Cambridge professor said skeptics still have a valid argument about so-called ‘climate alarmists.’
Mike Hulme told DailyMail.com that climate alarmists have created so much distrust and ill will among the public by blaming almost all of society’s issues on the climate emergency.
‘Climate change is cited as the sole explanation for everything going wrong in the world. Drought, famine, flooding, wars, racism – you name it. And if it’s bad, it’s down to global warming caused by humans,’ Professor Hulme said.
‘I disagree with the doom-mongers. Climate change is not like a comet approaching Earth. There is no good scientific or historical evidence that it will lead to human extinction or the collapse of human civilization,’ the professor of human geography added.
To Hulme’s point, the new study revealed a much more complicated picture of what’s happening at the South Pole.
While this study and others have uncovered trends linked to climate change, such as ice melting speeding up and oceans becoming hotter, the same research can find wild swings where temperatures drop and appear to debunk those trends.
From 2021 through 2023, scientists said the main reason Antarctica was able to rebuild so much of its ice was because of ‘large precipitation anomalies’ – or massive snow totals that can’t be counted on year after year.
Just like in other regions that get snow throughout the world, blizzards don’t strike every single year like clockwork, which is why the scientists believe this reversal may be a temporary event.
While climate deniers are taking a victory lap right now, the study published in Science China Earth Sciences still showed a concerning trend developing throughout the 21st century.
The Antarctic Ice Sheet had been losing ice at an alarming rate for nearly two decades, between 2002 and 2020
The study noted that the second decade of the 21st century (2011-2020) saw twice as much ice loss compared to the first (2002-2010).
This dramatic increase in melting was driven by ice loss in West Antarctica and increasing losses in East Antarctica’s Wilkes Land and Queen Mary Land.
Meanwhile, the stunning turnaround between 2021 and 2023 was driven by massive snowfalls in East Antarctica, particularly in areas like Dronning Maud Land and Enderby Land. This also helped driven down sea level rise to 5.10 millimeters by 2023.
Despite gaining ice overall, West Antarctica actually continued to lose ice due to warm ocean water melting glaciers from below – contributing to sea level rise.
The study estimated that if all the ice in East Antarctica’s Wilkes Land melted, it could raise sea levels by over 171 feet.
Even smaller losses, like those from the continent’s Totten glacier (12.8 feet of potential rise), could have major impacts around the world.
