Yes I think it is possible and yes I thing melting is too gradual. Among bad things that could happen this is very unlikely. It appears that between 8,000 and 15,000 years ago there were many underwater avalanches that caused tsunamis. This was during a period that sea level was rapidly rising and ice was rapidly melting. The theory is that if land ice melts rapidly enough it causes rapid release of pressure which cause earthquakes which cause underwater avalanches which cause tsunamis. There are real worries related to global warming -- the increased storm surges in hurricanes for one obvious one -- but my fear of a tsunami from global warming is something less than getting hit by an asteroid. Don't fret about the things that are highly unlikely, but consider the problems we can see already happening. And if this bums you out, go outside in the sun and have a great day.

http://www.livescience.com/38886-melting...

Landslides can cause tsunami, this is documented by an event that happened in Lituya Bay in Alaska back in the 50's

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1958_Lituya...

The landslide was triggered by an earthquake and created a wave almost 1700ft high.

There are also researched events that are linked to things like the Hawaiian sea cliffs that also created massive tsunami, (long ago), these are known to have reached the coast of the U.S. and caused damage for 10's of miles inland, but hundreds of thousands of years ago.

All that said, ice is not land, it floats so can't create the sort of displacement required for a tsunami, there are certainly case of local effects on ships but they where quite close, I think I recall seeing a you tube vid of some kayakers in the Arctic filming such an event but the wave was only 4-5ft high.

Real tsunami need a large volume of displacement so a large landslide or a large sub-sea earthquake or an impact from space.

A group of geologists have put forward a theory that, in the long term, geologic up-welling in land mass caused by ice lose, will cause earthquakes that in turn may create tsunami, but this is a long term effect we are not likely to see for at least centuries. Deniers tried to dismiss this as fiction (as deniers always try to do with science) but we have geologic evidence that areas in both the U.S. and Europe that where covered by ice at the end of the last ice age are still rising from the effects of that ice loss, with geologic issues linked to that movement.

As for Triple B answer he (like most deniers) is either intentional or through lack of knowledge confusing sea ice with glacial ice.

Antarctic glacial ice is indeed shrinking, which is probably playing a part in the expansion of sea ice as it adds large volumes of fresher water to the seas around Antarctica.

http://climate.nasa.gov/key_indicators/#...

Deniers want to play up Antarctic sea ice because of the 5 ice masses on the planet it is the only one expanding and deniers just ignore the other 4. i.e. Antarctic glacial ice, Greenland glacial ice, Arctic sea ice, and globally small mountain glaciers.

Clearly it is Triple B who is not doing his research.

Very large ice sections break off Antarctica all the time, without causing tsunami, some of these 'burgs' can be hundreds of kilometers long like B15

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iceberg_B-1...

A tsunami is usually caused by an earthquake when a large section of the sea floor (like a mile or several miles long) shifts, displacing a LOT of water. A piece of ice falling off a glacier or ice shelf would have to be about the same size to cause the same effect. It's not likely that the ice would be so unstable that a piece that size would fall, yet be stable enough that the whole mile of ice stays together until its all ready to fall off. The falling ice might create a large wave, but it would dissipate quickly as it spread out.

Yes according to the Butterfly effect.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_e...

Climate changes can cause Mega-typhoon which can lead to massive landsliding into sea and ocean leading to mega-tsunami. Of course, it would be much complex.

The other way is that the melted ice in both poles generated huge amount of water which was sunk into holes in the ground. That extra weight will cause great earthquake and thus causing mega-tsunamis.

When the Larsen B ice shelf collapsed it didn't cause a tsunami. Tsuami's are mainly caused by earthquakes. Fast movements of the Earth.

There was a study done that showed that global warming can cause the city of Boston to be under water

Global warming or climate change do not necessarily cause any specific weather event, the danger is they can make those events worse due to higher sea levels.

Too gradual. Fast in geological terms. Excruciatingly slow relative to election cycles and attention spans of journalists.

NO, Global Warming just warms a certain part of earth while earth rotates. Nothing else.

Your teacher told you Antarctica was melting? Your teacher has lied to you. The Antarctic has been breaking records for 2 or 3 consecutive year for most ice ever recorded in the history of man.

http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Londo...

So John please do your own research, as the truth is out there but the schools are told what they can and cannot teach you.

For years ever since my high school science teacher said Antarctica is melting and the oceans are rising I've been worried that if a giant piece of Antarctica fell off, it would cause a shockwave that would do much more than just flood cities. Do you think this is possible or is glacial melting too gradual?

Global warming can only cause a tsunami when someone farts and creates global warming. You jump into the ocean and the fart creates a shock wave so big is creates a tsunami.

doubt it