[aerohead]

1) The pure white powder snow phase of water has the highest reflective index ( albedo) as any natural surface. For any solar radiation falling on it, it reflects about 82.5% back to space, and absorbs 17.5%.
2) Global warming is such that, temperatures even at 18,600-feet elevation are warm enough to melt powder snow.
3) When the snow melts, and then re-freezes at night, it becomes an ice phase of water, with a reflective index of only 73%, absorbing 54.28% more energy.
This difference in heat absorption is equivalent to reducing Earth's orbital distance from the Sun to, 74,841,296-miles. 18.1-million miles closer to the Sun.
4) When all the ice melts, leaving exposed rock, the reflective index falls to around 62.5%, absorbing 37.5% of solar energy. The difference in absorbed solar radiation is equivalent to further reducing Earth's orbit to 63,504,954-miles, which places Earth 'inside' the orbit of Venus. 29,455,045-miles closer to the Sun.
This isn't a 'future' scenario. This is happening right now. This is what Andrew Glickson referred to as our greatest threat, as this is exactly what drove some of the greatest past mass-extinction events in Earth's geological record.
5) There's around 4300- billion tons of Methane stored in the permafrost and ocean floor clathrates.
6) Methane is a greenhouse gas which is 27-times more powerful than carbon-dioxide.
7) Releasing 4300-gigatons of methane is equivalent to releasing 116,100-gigatons of carbon dioxide.
8) 11,610,000,000,000-pound of carbon-dioxide.
9) 11.6-trillion pounds of carbon dioxide.
10) Earth will heat more and faster than ever in Earth's geologic record.
11) It can't be engineered for.
12) All the wealth on Earth wouldn't scratch the surface of the cost.
So, that's what's unfolding.
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SOURCE OF DATA:
Book, 'THIN ICE,' PhD Mark Bowen, Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, copyright, 2005.
Data provided by: Keith Mountain, radiation balance specialist, University of Oregon, radiometer measurements, Quelccaya Ice Cap, Peru, ice-core drilling expedition, 1980.
* Only tropical ice cap
* 18,000-feet elevation
* 1222-1158 Watt/square-meter insolation
* 902-913 Watt/square-meter reflected radiation
* 198-187 Watt/square-meter absorbed radiation
* 90%-95% solar radiation transmitted to surface
* Pure powder snow reflectivity 90%-82%
* Ice reflectivity 73%
* Exposed rock reflectivity 62.5% reflectivity ( CRC Manual average )
* Solar constant maximum @ Quelccaya = 1357.7 Watt/square-meter, hourly in situ measurements
* Solar constant = 1353 Watt/ square-meter ( Solar Energy Applications Laboratory, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado
* Average distance: Earth-to-Sun, 149,935,483.9-kilometers
* Steller flux @ 'surface': 30,416,318,550,000,000,000- Watt/square-meter ( calculated )
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'Ice' albedo solar radiation absorption-equivalency occurs at 74,841,303-miles from Sun.
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'Exposed-rock albedo radiation absorption-equivalency occurs at 63,503,861-miles from Sun.
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I performed a proof, working from Earth to Sun, advancing @ half-distance steps, from inside Venus' orbital distance, to within 1-Km of Sun.
Given the range of data given by Keith Mountain, I'm satisfied with my original two orbital distance-equivalencies for ice and rock.
The whole exercise is about an equivalent human-created astronomical forcing, caused by anthropogenic greenhouse gases, which is already in play, and mimics past forcing and amplifications, leading to mass extinction events