2007-02-08 18:02:01 · 6 answers · asked by Bullfrog Woman 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Geography
It is possible but not probable. If you take all the mountains and put them in the ocean, flatten out all the land into the low spots, the earth would be covered by about 1,000 feet of water. But then this would involve massive land shifts, landslides and subsidence and the earth is not made up that way. To see how some of the coast lines would actually change due to the ice caps melting go to the web site below.
2007-02-08 18:18:04 · answer #1 · answered by Really, I'm Fine 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I honestly think it would be nearly impossible for this to happen. Even if all the ice contained in the ice caps of Antarctica and Greenland melted - the oceans would only rise by about 70m (a bit more than 210 feet). This is not even close to the elevation of most continents. Erosion would make very little difference because of isostatic rebound (since the continental crust is lighter than the oceanic crust it will "float" above it in the asthenosphere) --- even if you erode away the tops of mountains it's like trying to make an iceberg sink by chipping away at the top of it.
For the earth to be almost completely covered in water would be almost completely impossible (though possible, it's about as likely as winning the lottery 10 times in a row).
2007-02-09 03:03:37 · answer #2 · answered by brooks b 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If all the polar ice melted it is estimated that sea level around the world would raise from 200 to 600 ft. There simply isn't enough water locked up in our ice caps to make Waterworld, which would require something like a 20,000 ft rise in water level. Even a 200 ft rise in sea level would be catastrophic, though, covering all of the worlds river deltas and many coastal cities. There would be no Netherlands and no Bangladesh.
2007-02-09 05:26:58 · answer #3 · answered by Helmut 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Unlikely. The surface of the earth has had large land masses above water for a long, long time and through some much larger climate changes than what we're experiencing the start of now.
2007-02-09 02:06:21 · answer #4 · answered by violentquaker 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No there is not enough freshwater reserve to flood the continental plates completely
2007-02-09 04:07:44 · answer #5 · answered by Ken B 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Not a chance, we need more water as it is.
2007-02-09 03:09:30 · answer #6 · answered by J K 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋