Thermohaline and other minor details

Well, here's some happy news. When my favorite anthropologist recently said to me, "Why are you blogging about an ice age? Isn't it global warming?" I set out to see if perhaps I was misinformed.

And as it turns out, I am. Sort of. There is an instant ice age theory (more properly known as thermohaline interruption). But theory and reality have not yet converged.

Theory goes like this: the ocean's currents together with surface winds control the temperature of the ocean, and therefore, the climate. Currents form as denser, colder, saltier water falls to the bottom and is pushed around the globe by the landscape at the bottom of the sea. As hotter temperatures increase evaporation and therefore precipiation (freshwater) as well as melting of sea ice (also less salty), the exchange of water from the surface to the deep curents slows down, interrupting the normal process that warms the Earth as a whole. Voila, an ice age. At least in Europe and other locales attached to the Northern Atlantic.

Reality goes like this: it appears that surface winds blowing across the ocean are playing a larger part in ocean temperature than previously anticipated. So at least for now, sudden glaciation is less likely than certain other outcomes, my personal favorite being: "mass extinction events. "

Extinction of whom, I'd like to know? Humans?

Well, don't count us out. Wiki says: "Mass extinctions affect most major taxonomic groups present at the time — birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, invertebrates and other simpler life forms."

Perhaps the reticulated pythons and howler monkeys will go first and then I will be able to execute my beach-living-with-a-Jeep plan after all. That would be happy news, don't you think?
Most of you also seem to be expecting happy news.

Based on survey data so far, most of you are planning to fly off to warm places with family and friends in the event of a climatic catastrophe.

If you haven't yet taken the survey, click here and answer 5 easy questions. Look for the results in few short days--provided we haven't yet gone the way of the woolly mammoth. Click Here to take survey