<p>Melted polar ice water makes the oceans deeper on average.  The extra water on top of the oceanic plates makes them sink relative to the continental plates. This relative vertical displacement will facilitate the subduction of any oceanic plates that are currently stuck (like the one off the coast of Oregon, which is about 500 years over due for a massive jerk that will set off the long anticipated "Big One").</p>

<p>It is like car bumpers: if the bumper of a lighter, pushed car is higher than the bumper of a heavier, pushing car, the pushed car bumper will eventually ride up onto the bumper of the pushing car when the weight disparity becomes great enough. The greater the disparity, the more pronounced the effect. </p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-12-04T02:22:09.587Z
I know nothing about the geology there, but [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_level_rise#Projections) regarding rise projections: "the estimated timescale was centuries to millennia, and would contribute 4 to 6 metres (13 to 20 ft) or more to sea levels over this period. Have to wonder if that much would be notable compared to [12,000 ft average depth](https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/oceandepth.html) of general oceans. Certainly any mass change could be significant, but since it's only a change of ~0.1% in the next 1,000 years... wonder if it may be outweighed by other factors.
JeopardyTempest
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-12-04T19:22:10.973Z
i see the question have a close vote for opinion based,but it must be possible to get an answer to this based on the isostatic rebound in other areas of the world.
trond hansen
<geology><hydrology>
When will the weight of melted polar ice release the (currently stuck) subduction of the oceanic plate West of the Oregon coast?
Forest
# When will the weight of melted polar ice release the (currently stuck) subduction of the oceanic plate West of the Oregon coast?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2018-12-03)

Melted polar ice water makes the oceans deeper on average. The extra water on top of the oceanic plates makes them sink relative to the continental plates. This relative vertical displacement will facilitate the subduction of any oceanic plates that are currently stuck (like the one off the coast of Oregon, which is about 500 years over due for a massive jerk that will set off the long anticipated "Big One").

It is like car bumpers: if the bumper of a lighter, pushed car is higher than the bumper of a heavier, pushing car, the pushed car bumper will eventually ride up onto the bumper of the pushing car when the weight disparity becomes great enough. The greater the disparity, the more pronounced the effect.

**Tags:** geology, hydrology

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I know nothing about the geology there, but [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_level_rise#Projections) regarding rise projections: "the estimated timescale was centuries to millennia, and would contribute 4 to 6 metres (13 to 20 ft) or more to sea levels over this period. Have to wonder if that much would be notable compared to [12,000 ft average depth](https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/oceandepth.html) of general oceans. Certainly any mass change could be significant, but since it's only a change of ~0.1% in the next 1,000 years... wonder if it may be outweighed by other factors.  
> **username_2**: i see the question have a close vote for opinion based,but it must be possible to get an answer to this based on the isostatic rebound in other areas of the world.  

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## 0 answers

