Glacier modeling implications (viscosity changes → sea level models)

29:16higher viscosity, right, >> in between interfaces of ice and other solids, then that completely changes the current models about how glaciers slide off continents. >> Oh, interesting. >> Right. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Because before we had this number >> Yeah. And we're like trying to model okay the glacier is like going this is the friction >> but now we've got a completely different number and the number is two orders of magnitude different about 100 times different. So now the the sliding rate is going to change it's going to get a lot higher. >> Just to be clear your your note about the difference is we initially talked about how the assumption was it's you know 2 to 3 nm or a couple of nanometers is the slimy water layer that enables

29:58the ability to skate quote unquote. We've now with AFM tuning fork and followon u research identified that that's in the hundreds of nanometers. >> Yeah. Yeah. What we what we've clearly done the the layer depends on how much pressure you're putting right like if if there's a human body weight on a on a bit of tiny skate. I mean there's a lot of pressure on that tiny little like you know um millimeter thick blade. But with a glacier glacier is like like kilome thick worth of worth of stuff. So there's going to be a lot more pressure. So the the layer is going to scale that way. What we've done is confirm that viscosity is a lot higher. Yes. And that viscosity number is what we're going to put into our models. >> Right. Because now because the viscosity

30:39is a lot higher, it's a variable when we look at large scale glacier glacia glaciology. >> It's a variable in a larger equation that has meaningful impact on modeling. >> Yes. Yes. And one of the one of the things that you can think about is like these shear thinning events that happen all of a sudden that lead to a catastrophic flow and acceleration. There's this glacier called the Thuates Glacier. I think that's how you pronounce it in Antarctica. This single glacier contributes to 4% of the global sea level rise. Okay. It's massive. It's the size of like states in America. And it is moving extremely flat fast. Something like 2 kilometers per year.

31:19Mhm. [clears throat] >> That's really fast for a glacier. >> The surface of the glacia is moving on the underlying >> land mass. Yeah. And you know in this century it's projected to raise the sea levels by several centimeters. If the whole thing went which I think people are projecting it's going to go in the next three centuries. That's 2 feet of ocean level rise from a single glacier. >> It's crazy. >> It's crazy. Right. And now with these new models it's like maybe this is even faster. >> Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. It's crazy. >> Yeah. Right. That this is actually an interesting note on how what seems to be a totally unrelated issue with the question the entry question of why is ice slippery? >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Uh has all of these second, third, and

32:01fourth order consequences on things like how do we model >> uh sea level rise based off of glacial ice >> uh uh evaporation etc. >> Uh which which makes sense when we talk through it, but it's not you don't immediately make the connection. >> You don't Yeah. You don't I mean you you could be like oh it's such a why do we care? Well in science there's always other consequences that deal with these fundamentals right fundamentally why are water molecules so weird has so many consequences. >> It's so um I thought that was like pretty exciting because it is such a simple question. It's been 200 years that we've been asking it. All of our best scientists have worked on it and you know we're still the closer you look

32:44the more interesting things are. >> This is this is so and I think what's so fascinating about this is the Winter Olympics have been going on now for I think it's 25 years is what they were saying on the broadcast. It's like relatively new as compared to the Olympics that's been around for a very long time. >> I think it's it's been around longer. No, >> 25 years. So we can we we can do a look the way that NBC is >> no 1924 was the first one in Shyami. So it must >> shamanics sorry shamanics. >> So they must be talking about the like in the way the Premier League talks about the Premier League era versus the like you know there's like errors that are exactly legit or not legit whatever what have you. >> It it it is still fascinating to me that