ShortList is supported by you, our amazing readers. When you click through the links on our site and make a purchase we may earn a commission. Learn more

Which cities will disappear when the ice caps melt?

The globe is going to look very different

Which cities will disappear when the ice caps melt?
Tom Victor
18 July 2017

Enjoying the warm weather this summer? Let us bring you back down to earth by reminding you that the high temperatures are linked to the global warming that will eventually destroy some of your favourite cities in the world.

The slow death of the planet might not be an issue for tardigrades, but it very much is for humans, as Business Insider has explained.

In the video below, the publication details the major cities which would suffer when the world’s ice melts, and it’s bad news for a lot of Europe and North and South America.

Citing National Geographic, Business Insider maps out the effects of sea levels rising as much as 216 feet, and that would mean no more London.

Most of the east coast of the United States will vanish too, so wave goodbye to Miami, New York, Houston, New Orleans and Boston.

Business Insider
Business Insider

In Europe, Lisbon, Venice and Stockholm would all be gone, and London and Barcelona would be in serious trouble. It’s not looking good for Copenhagen or Odessa either.

Shanghai, Beijing and Tokyo will also almost certainly end up being very wet indeed.

As Business Insider notes, it is likely to take more than 5,000 years for all the ice to melt. But let’s not underestimate the power of humans to fuck things up more quickly than anyone could have possibly predicted.

As per the current estimates, parts of Africa will stay intact, but with temperature levels too high to sustain life. Australia will almost be divided into two islands as much of the country disappears underwater.

Oh, and that ‘is it Holland or The Netherlands?’ debate - you can put that to one side because the country will be underwater before too long.

Check out this animated map to see the full extent of the destruction:

(Images: YouTube/BI Science)