Loss of Antarctic ice 'tongue' could change seas

[phantom power]

The area around the glacier tongue, since halved in length by the collision, and to the west are one of the few places around Antarctica where dense, salty water is formed and sinks to the depths of the ocean, said mission leader Steve Rintoul.

This dense "bottom water" is a key driver of the global overturning circulation that includes the current that brings warm Atlantic waters to western Europe.

But he said there was a risk the area could now be less effective in producing the bottom water that feeds the deep ocean currents, which influence global climate patterns.

"This is one of the few places around Antarctica where the sea surface is made dense enough to sink to the deep ocean," Rintoul said from the icebreaker Aurora Australis.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41351840/ns/us_news-environment/