Photo of Manhattan after Ice Caps Melt

1. Anita
   January 27th, 2007 at 3:07 am

   I debated posting this, as I felt it bordered between Neat and Scary. Then again, if you're an inland farmer or ice fisherman in Northern Russia, you probably can't wait for the day that the seas rise and earth warms - can you say cheap beachfront property?

2. Cory OBrien
   January 27th, 2007 at 3:11 am

   If the ice caps melted and Manhattan went under water, I'd imagine it would be a little more Children Of Men-ish, but it's definitely a cool illustration of what could happen.

3. Phil
   January 27th, 2007 at 3:47 am

   Does this mean it's going to happen before the Freedom Tower is finished?

4. anon
   January 27th, 2007 at 4:21 am

   I hope I will be reincarnated into a fish

5. beajerry
   January 27th, 2007 at 4:29 am

   Diving for Starbucks?

6. b
   January 27th, 2007 at 9:19 am

   of course the ice caps will melt before the freedom tower is finished.
   obviously, based on this photo, they're going to melt so fast that a country with 1/4 the world's GDP wouldn't be able to construct any sort of barriers to protect major metropolitan areas where millions of its citizens live, like NYC and DC.

   we only have FIVE MORE YEARS!! everybody panic and buy al gore's dvd.

   Global Warming Could Kill 4.5 Billion by 2012
   http://www.reason.com/blog/show/117782.html

7. Mark
   January 27th, 2007 at 11:35 am

   That's what Manhattan would look like if the ice caps melted, and for some odd reason the people who live there decide not to build dikes to hold out the water, the way the Dutch have done for centuries.

8. Puff
   January 27th, 2007 at 11:50 am

   Where are the boats?
   I should get ready to start the NY-Gondola Taxi Company with a load of boat-drivers from Ethiopia.

9. Andie
   January 27th, 2007 at 12:11 pm

   Sweet! I think this would move NYC up the list of places I'd like to visit. Honestly, I can't get horrified over this, it's like 'boo-hoo, those poor rich bastards have to take the boat to work and all the businesses on the first ten floors have to move.'

   Actually, wasn't there a Pinky and the Brain episode with that exact plot?

10. William
    January 27th, 2007 at 2:06 pm

    Amazing image - good luck building a dike that would hold back that much water.. ha! right.. I wonder how structurally sound the buildings would be in that situation? A few good storms would knock them down? or could you still commute to work in one of them..

11. Alex
    January 27th, 2007 at 2:08 pm

    It's a good thing I live on a hill!

12. MWMS
    January 27th, 2007 at 9:39 pm

    New Venice!

13. tim
    January 29th, 2007 at 8:14 am

    Global warming.. ROFL !!! The best joke yet! The sky is falling, send billions here.. LOL

14. alejandro
    February 4th, 2007 at 9:41 am

    I hope it doesn't happen or no more holograms fliyng cars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

15. Climatologist
    February 7th, 2007 at 4:45 pm

    Tim, global warming isn't a "joke". The scientific method has been applied - rigorously so - for decades, and the evidence is simply undeniable at this point. The only people who still doubt either global warming or its link to human greenhouse gas emissions are those who can't tell the difference between a peer-reviewed academic study and Exxon-backed propaganda.

16. Ox
    February 7th, 2007 at 5:13 pm

    If the Ice caps melt...... wait. last time i checked ICE took up more space than WATER, wouldnt the sea level drop?

17. Haffi
    February 11th, 2007 at 6:27 am

    Ox you silly... the ice caps are above sea levels which means that the ice that melts will "distribute" above current sea levels.

18. logic
    February 22nd, 2007 at 6:26 pm

    Is it any wonder how we find ourselves in this situation, when people think sea levels will drop as the polar caps melt and others think its a joke...the photo is a bit of hype i am sure, but I doubt if Tim will continue laughing in the years to come. As for you Ox...have no fear your future is secure. I hear they give minimum wage to fill sandbags

19. melting
    February 23rd, 2007 at 10:23 pm

    Let them melt! bring it on! you are a bunch of chickens.

20. hopefull man
    May 4th, 2007 at 4:30 pm

    i believe that this is going to happen sooner or later probably sooner than later. When it does its going to be bad. People need to start being more efficient in everyday living. Driving less consuming less wasting less. Recycle, do anything that you can think of to make the enviorment a better place. cut down on our emissions. It might seem like you are not doing much but you are and you are making a diffrence. I hope scientists come out with some new technology that can make a bigger diffrence. Recycle.

21. Kimberly
    October 5th, 2007 at 4:41 pm

    the ice caps melting is not being caused by global warming, but a polar magnetic shift that is natural. It will happen but Manhattan will not look like this photo. It will be completely destroyed by earthquakes and tsunamis, and nobody can do anything about it.

22. Bob
    December 13th, 2007 at 7:06 pm

    I think it's really funny that some people think the government could build some sort of barrier to protect us just because "we're the most powerful country!" Yeah right, because that worked SO WELL for New Orleans. Good luck New York.

23. bo bice
    December 29th, 2007 at 9:31 am

    hahaha fuck it

24. lex
    December 30th, 2007 at 1:40 pm

    considering this pic, I'ma move To Brooklyn.

25. Wren Clara Deleschnonevah
    January 24th, 2008 at 12:47 pm

    This is such a lie...If the polar Ice caps were actually melting like they're saying it was, manhatten would not be under that much water! Ice EXPANDS when it freezes. The science of this really just doesn't add up. Everyone needs to stop worrying about "global warming" and get back to their normal lives. Let the "activists" find ways to "fix it".

26. Captian Obvious
    January 27th, 2008 at 12:37 pm

    Actually, the sea levels have started to rise, and although it's really really slow, eventually many islands like Tuvalu will be flooded, and the surface of every continent will be greatly reduced.

27. NotParanoid
    January 29th, 2008 at 12:55 pm

    I believe people have too much time on their hands. If people had to work to support kids and a house they would not have time to worry about such silly matters.

28. Rika
    February 19th, 2008 at 7:04 pm

    This picture is exactly the right picture of what the future will be like. Isn't it ironic that the memorial of the World Trade Center will be flooded if half of Greenland melts.

29. Bob Hamilton
    April 28th, 2008 at 11:04 pm

    As i am reading these comments i am not to suprised to see them range from " Well i guess they won't be able to use the first 10 to 20 floors" or "well i guess those rich bastards will have to take a boat to work" or even better still " I am going to start a water taxi service"
    Ok now i am going to try to say this as nicely as possible...HOW STUPID CAN YOU PEOPLE POSSIBLY BE?????
    Have you even given one second of thought to the fact
    THERE IS NO ELECTRICITY in New York if it is under water???? " Ya just a minor setback, we will all continue to head downtown. It's work as usual " Wake up and give your heads a shake ! With thought processes the likes of these may God have mercy on us all if we ever do have to deal with a large scale issue such as this.

30. Dan McGuire
    May 6th, 2008 at 9:01 pm

    First of all, the winter of 2007/2008 the N. ice pack was larger than normal. It was the coldest winter in the N. hemisphere in a century. The S. ice cap was the largest ever recorded in the winter of 2007. Climatologist should check NASA atmoshere temp. monitoring satalite data. If he had he would have found that it has been cooling for a decade, alot since 2004. The hockey stick was based on bad math, not to mention missing the little ice age and the midievel warm period. A period much warmer than today. The little ice age is directly linked to solar activity, as are all of the temp variations we have. As for everyone agreeing it is warming, the UN climate change panel even had to admit it has not been warming. I give the die hards about 2 more years before the continual laughter quiets them down. I'm already laughing.

31. The One
    June 4th, 2008 at 7:02 pm

    The effects of global warming, besides the rising worldwide temperature, which happened at the start of the Industrial Revolution, when trains were in wide use, are already apparent in the weather changes. More and worse storms have and will continue to occur, which will erode coastlines. The past minor heatings of the Earth after ice ages haven't had as large an effect on the Earth as is happening now, due to we humans inventing nuclear weapons and natural energy-consuming machines. The dinosaurs destroyed vegetation, but they didn't also kill each other with nuclear bombs, pollute the oceans with oil and other dangerous chemicals, and use up a large amount of natural resources(e.g. oil). The coastlines of the continents will fall into the oceans, the fauna will die out(starting at a microscopic level), and we humans will destroy land faster than volcanoes can recreate it, unless we find answers to the problem. Yes, there IS a problem and we have to all admit it and take responsibility for causing it while at the same time looking for solutions.

32. INoJumean
    July 7th, 2008 at 12:32 pm

    @TheOne: reread your post.....
    Dinosaurs didn't use natural resources(eg. oil), um does the term fossil fuels mean anything?

33. Taargus Taargus
    July 17th, 2008 at 11:40 am

    Why can't we just start filling buckets of water and rocketing them to the moon? That way we'll lower the sea levels AND have a feasible alternative living environment AND create thousands of new jobs as bucket fillers/rocket pilots. PREEMPTIVE STRIKE!!!

34. kettil
    August 14th, 2008 at 8:39 am

    NOOOO!!

    this is so UNFAIR!

    I love New York, and finally moved there a year ago, and now THIS is going to happen?

    Just GREAT...

    Why cant they just build huge containers to store the water in. They can even freeze it in there. Problem solved!

35. kettil
    August 14th, 2008 at 8:40 am

    AND, one more thing.

    Why cant we just transfer the water where it is actually needed??

    Like... lets say-AFRICA?!!!

    The deserts??? and so on.

    Why does EVERYTHING have to end in disaster!

36. Vince
    September 12th, 2008 at 1:58 pm

    Hay look we have a Venice in the USA!!!

37. Jesus was here
    September 19th, 2008 at 6:54 pm

    Love it. Good humor here. Keep it up people.

38. flabio
    September 26th, 2008 at 9:19 am

    hola al gores! ok lets think this over 75 percent of earth is covered with water if for some reson the ice caps melted the sea level would go up like two feet woopty do. all of the water from the ice caps would spred through out the whole ocean wouldent it, do know how big the ocean is, probably not, but its pretty darn big

39. flabio
    September 26th, 2008 at 9:49 am

    MAY I SUGGEST YOU READ THIS...
    FROM THE BIBLE FOR ALL THOSE ATHEISTS OUT THE
    Genisis chapter nine verse 8:11..
    "And God said i solemly promise never to send another flood to kill all living creatures and destroy the Earth"

40. somerandomguy
    October 24th, 2008 at 10:49 pm

    I have a solution to the problem, instead of waiting for global warming to kill 4.5 billion people, we act now, and kill 4.5 billion people, and ruin everyones lives, that way global warming will stop, and wont...kill 4.5 billion people?

41. God
    October 27th, 2008 at 1:59 am

    You can't prove that Flabio... Thanks for the idea.

42. reyzee
    November 4th, 2008 at 5:51 pm

    what year will it happen in and will it drow the whole world ???? i have DREAMSSSS!!!!!

43. Jordyn
    December 4th, 2008 at 7:32 pm

    i think is really sad that you guys can crack jokes when this is sucha serious issue. homeless and runaways will be dying faster then already, homes will deteriorate leaving families homeless, and times square will be so far under the water that in a few years people will start thinking about it like atlantis. a city lost forever under the sea.
    our world is dying.
    and no one is trying to help save it.
    where's the joke in that?

44. InoJumean
    December 11th, 2008 at 12:33 pm

    Our world is NOT dying, it is reorganizing. Much like it has for thousands of years before now. And BTW, since the norther cap is melting at an alarming rate, wouldn't New York and all the other coastal cities be in danger of some sort of flooding, yet there are no reports of anything like that.
    The homeless and runaways will be resiliant IF they needed to be, much like they are today. They will find a way to live.
    The joke is people like you who think that people can't find the solution to problems.

45. shiftupmt
    December 14th, 2008 at 6:25 pm

    You guys think global warming is a joke?

    Check out the news from a fey days back:
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/7758831.stm

    Thats Dec 1 2008, in Venice, where the gov is actually building dikes to protect from flooding.... doesn't do that much good does it...?

    I think if we continue with this rate, its just a matter of time until we see such a photo in the news....

46. kelly
    January 26th, 2009 at 2:43 am

    anyone making jokes about this is stupid, funny but stupid. i bet you wont be cracking jokes when your up to your waist in water. by the way those venace pictures are terrifying and horribly depressing

47. EdinCA
    March 19th, 2009 at 12:57 am

    Funny, if we take preventative action all of the "nay sayers" will say I told you so. Should we teach them a lesson and let the planet got shit?

    Maybe this is another step in evolution, we created our own demise.

48. letty
    March 20th, 2009 at 7:53 pm

    I believe global arming is real but peopel exagurate way to much. It is not that big of a deal, and people need to get over it!!!

49. Tigress The Elegant
    March 28th, 2009 at 9:03 am

    Hola, folks. i'm just a preteen girl, but even I know that all these global warming problems are serious. And thanks again, guys, for leaving such a terrible world for my generation to deal with. you adults will be dead or really old when the worst of it comes. has anybody seen Disney/Pixar's Walle? my generation will have to be the one telling their kids that once, New York was a state, but now, you can never visit the museums and shops and experience area. Sure, they'll move everything they can to somewhere safer, and try to relocate the people, but it'll never be the same. besides, if that happens to NY, it can happen to any low elevated coast. my generation may have to leave earth. has anyone seen The Last Mismy? a creepy children's movie, but in several scenes show humans wearing protective "armor" against pollutants. will i have to explain to my children why they can't take off the clunky stuff off and play? yes, i am exaggerating, but only because i'm trying to make a point. As for flambio's quoting the bible, I am an athiest, and I believe only in science. yes, global warming is happening, yes, it is serious, and no, we can't let the “activists” find ways to “fix it”, we all need to pitch in. my generation, my parents', even the baby boomers. This is mostly a problem that is not completely fixable by people who aren't scientists with degrees, but ordinaries like me can, and must, do their part. REUSE!! REDUCE!! RECYCLE!! conserve. save the whales, etc. no, trying to help the environment does not make you a hippie, it makes you a sensible, even smart human bean who cares, a everyone should, about their home. also, remember, the earth is not ours to ruin. other life is here, too. we evolved from lower creatures, so we should treat them with more respect. plenty of people i've talked to say its our earth to take care of, and we suck at it, so its our earth to throw away. IT IS NOT! i'm not some crazy animal rights activist, and i dont want to be one when i grow up, but that still, we cant be conceited about it. we are superior to other animals, but we need them. we cant live on chemical-generated trash like so many foods are becoming. im going to leave, now because the librarian is looking at my funny. all i'll say now is that my science teacher would be so proud of me.

50. Evil Eye
    March 28th, 2009 at 9:05 am

    hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha i know what you all will say after this, but Tigress the Elegant is some fucking preacher or somthing.

51. Kassie
    April 10th, 2009 at 12:25 am

    Okay, Guys, Grow up. This is really a serious matter, I'm not telling you stop living your lives and worry about this all the time, because I know I don't. But Have you all not noticed the change in weather, and how serious it is? Instead of throwing your bottles away recycle them, don't sleep with the tv on, carpool sometimes, plant a tree, i mean LITTLE things that matter. I'm not telling you to save the world, but just help out, it's not that hard. You really wanna know, I'm an eighteen year old girl that lives in the country and I'm pretty sure I'm more responsible to take action and help our world, and take this seriously than some of you all that are probably supposed to mature adults but yet are laughing at this. Take Action, It's Time.

52. Therese
    April 22nd, 2009 at 10:22 pm

    I have a suggestion, why not figure out where the land will be, and work to make that part more livable. For example, build underground concrete water tunnels from the shore to the Midwest, build solar desalination plants on the "new" (anticipated) shoreline, that will send desalinated water into the tunnels, and use solar stirling engines to power pumps to send the now-fresh water into the Oglala (?) aquifer, which is currently being depleted at a rapid clip. We're going to be living inland, so seems like the best way is to plan ahead. This can be done on any continent, including Africa, which really needs this like, yesterday! JMHO.

53. Adam.
    July 23rd, 2009 at 6:40 pm

    Okay. So global warming is happening. However I follow the theroy that it's just the earths cycle. In a way I guess you could put it as "The earth is self-healing." Ii don't see global warming as an issue atall. Alteast not as bad as the press make it. It's an issue but it's not like "WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE NEXT YEAR. KTHNX." Like many media outlets are doing, we all know the media like the push the limits and scare the public.

    I do think our consumer rate is a problem, but thats another story. The world is full of problems. As I jsut leave it to nature to sort this out.

    And hey, if 4.5billion of us DO die by this, oh well. Maybe we will evolve into fish, or be able to survive under water? (And yes, I follow the theroy if evolution), and i'll be diving for my starbucks.

54. World of Science
    July 29th, 2009 at 6:29 am

    Warning signs are appearing in Greenland where ice is melting twice as fast as it was five years ago. Ocean levels globally are edging up about 3.5 millimeters a year.

55. redic
    August 25th, 2009 at 2:46 pm

    this is dumb

56. Valerie
    August 29th, 2009 at 6:50 pm

    Uhm....yeah. This sucks. Boo to global warming.

    Cool picture though!

    Not that I'm saying it would be cool if it actually happened. That would be like soooo craptastic. :{

57. BUBBZ
    September 13th, 2009 at 5:07 pm

    THIS WILL NOT HAPPEN BECAUSE I STILL NEED TO LIVE IN NEW YORK!HELLOOOOOO!

58. RMM
    October 18th, 2009 at 3:14 am

    Global warming is a myth. The Earth has actually been cooling.

59. Bryan
    November 2nd, 2009 at 5:00 am

    Global Warming is just a distraction from the real issues that the government doesn't want anyone to know about

60. Science Guy
    November 12th, 2009 at 2:58 am

    This will never happen, a little test for you.
    Fill a jug up half way with water.
    Fill the rest of the jug up with ice til it is full.
    (This will represent our earths water level)
    Now let the jug sit until all the ice is melted.

    Experiment done. Notice how the melting of the ice actually lowered the water level from 1 full jug, to about 3/4s.

    Your welcome.

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