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what effect on earth if fresh water of glashiers mixed in salty water of sea

by shyam kumar rajora
(new delhi india)

The Great Ocean Conveyor<br>Red for surface path and Blue for deep ocean current

The Great Ocean Conveyor
Red for surface path and Blue for deep ocean current

What is the effect on earth if fresh water of glaciers get mixed in with salty water of sea?


Barry's Response - Thermohaline circulation looks at gulf streams in the oceans, which are driven in part by temperature gradients and in part by density changes arising from variations in the water composition. Most notable of the chemical constituents in ocean water is its salt content. When a surface current of water, pushed by wind, reaches temperate latitudes and beyond, it tends to cool and sink and end up in ocean basins, making its way back to the tropics. One trip through this process can take hundreds of years. This circulation has an important effect on climates of the earth.

How do glaciers affect this? - Fresh water running off from melting glaciers has a lower density than the sea water it drains into. Scientists believe this water has the potential to disrupt these pre-existing currents, especially the part where water sinks in the cold areas of the planet.

They often point to an event known as the Younger Dryas, a mini ice age that occurred about 12,000 years ago and may have resulted from rapid glacial runoff beforehand, which diluted the salty water of sea. The result was likely a temporary stoppage of the current and a sudden mini ice age in the middle of a warming trend.

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