ICE LOSS DANGERS LOOMING
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Arctic
Sea Ice Levels Hit Record Low, Scientists Say We're 'Running Out Of Time'
As Arctic sea ice levels hit a new
record low this month, scientists and activists gathered to discuss how to
bridge the gap between scientific facts and the public's limited understanding
that we are, in their words, "really running out of time."
The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) released preliminary findings
Wednesday suggesting that on Sept. 16, Arctic ice covered just 1.32 million
square miles -- the lowest extent ever recorded. This minimum is 49 percent
below the 1979 average, when satellite records began.
“The loss of summer sea ice has led to unusual warming of the
Arctic atmosphere, that in turn impacts weather patterns in the Northern
Hemisphere, that can result in persistent extreme weather such as droughts,
heat waves and flooding,” NSIDC scientist Dr. Julienne Stroeve told Greenpeace in
a press release.
Wednesday morning, a group of
climate scientists and activists met at a Greenpeace International panel in New
York to strategize on potential responses to the changing Arctic climate.
"There's a huge gap between
what is understood by the scientific community and what is known by the
public," NASA scientist James Hansen said, adding that he believed,
"unfortunately, that gap is not being closed."
What the scientific community
understands is that Arctic ice is melting at an accelerated rate -- and that
humans play a role in these changes.
According to the panel, humans are
"really running out of time" to prevent atmospheric carbon dioxide
concentrations from reaching levels that would precipitate runaway climate
change. Hansen warned that even maintaining current concentrations of
approximately 390 parts per million for several centuries "guarantees
disaster."
Greenland's
ice sheet melt: a sensational picture of a blunt fact
Once you look at the
colour coding and absorb what it means it is a mapping of potential climate
change catastrophe
The Greenland ice sheet on July 8, left, and four days later on the right. An estimated 97% of the ice sheet surface had thawed by July 12. Photograph: Nasa
This is the most frightening
picture you will ever see. The information expressed visually here can be
summed up in three words: change or die. So let's take a closer look.
These
two juxtaposed images of Greenland are based on observations by
satellites monitored by Nasa. The view on the left synthesises their
collective view of this inhospitable landmass in the Arctic Circle on 8 July
2012. That on the right shows what Greenland looked like to the same satellites
on 12 July, just four days later. A huge amount of ice has melted in an
extremely unusual Arctic heatwave.
It's important to appreciate
the colour coding of this visible science. Areas marked in white are places
where no surface melting of the Greenland ice sheet has taken place. Areas in
pale pink were seen by just one satellite to undergo surface melting. Areas in
dark pink were seen by two or three satellites to undergo surface melting.
Let's
also be clear about what "surface melting" means. The Greenland icecsheet has not vanished. Parts of it are two
miles deep: the entire area it covers is six times bigger than Britain. That's
a vast quantity of ice. Every summer, parts of the surface of this immense
frozen world melt. Temporary lakes even appear on top of the ancient ice mass.
Such activity on the surface of the ice sheet has been observed to be growing. But
nothing prepared Nasa scientists analysing satellite data this month for the
information visualised here. According to these images, 97% of the surface of
Greenland's frozen interior saw a sudden summer melt this month. That is a
spectacular departure from the expected.
It has happened before – in
1889. Glaciologist Laura Koenig, part of the Nasa team interpreting the data,
said that ice cores show this kind of warm summer effect causes unusual melting
about every 150 years, so "this event is right on time … but if we
continue to observe melting events like this in upcoming years, it will be
worrisome."
I am
going out of my way to stress the cautious view of these spectacularly
contrasting images of Greenland. The ice sheet has not vanished, it just went
soft at the top. Even this massive area of surface melt can be seen as a
one-off summer event recurring twice every three centuries. But … we know this
is not the only evidence that the Arctic is losing ice. This picture of sudden
change does not come out of the blue, or the white. It is the kind of thing
alarmists have been predicting for years. Yet here it is, blunt fact. It is the
sceptics who are irrational, revelling in delusion. Here is the reality, clear as day.
The effects of global warming
caused by human action are worryingly visible here. But what effect will this
clear and spectacular evidence have? When it comes to climate change the human
ability to ignore evidence is as terrifying as the facts themselves. How is our
technological ability to record and transmit information so far in advance of
our ability to respond to our growing knowledge? Already, teams of deniers are
probably poring over this latest iceberg of data chipping away until they can
melt its credibility – just that tiny bit that legitimates governments in their
paralysis and inaction.
Nasa could perhaps have
designed this visualisation a bit less sensationally. To a casual eye, the use
of white in the first picture might make it look as if the ice sheet itself has
disappeared. If it does, we will not need satellites to tell us. This is about
events on the surface of a vast and deep layering of ice. But once you look at
the colour coding and absorb what it means it is a mapping of potential
catastrophe. The picture is clear. Can we bear to look? And can the evidence of
our eyes make us act?
Sea ice continues to track at
low levels
Arctic
sea ice continued to track at levels far below average through the middle of
July, with open water in the Kara and Barents seas reaching as far north as
typically seen during September. Melt onset began earlier than normal
throughout most of the Arctic.
Early melt
onset
The timing of seasonal melt onset, which can be estimated from satellite passive microwave data, plays an important role in the amount of ice that melts each summer. Unusually early melt onset means an early reduction in the surface albedo, allowing for more solar heating of the ice, which in turn allows melt ponds and open water areas to develop earlier in the melt season. In 2012, melt began earlier than normal (as compared to averages for the period 1979 to 2000) throughout most of the Arctic, the exceptions being the Bering Sea and the East Greenland Sea. Melt in the Kara and Barents seas began more than two weeks earlier than normal. Melt onset for the Laptev Sea region as a whole started on June 1 and was the earliest seen in the satellite record. Melt began 12 and 9 days earlier than normal averaged over the Beaufort and Chukchi seas, respectively.
The timing of seasonal melt onset, which can be estimated from satellite passive microwave data, plays an important role in the amount of ice that melts each summer. Unusually early melt onset means an early reduction in the surface albedo, allowing for more solar heating of the ice, which in turn allows melt ponds and open water areas to develop earlier in the melt season. In 2012, melt began earlier than normal (as compared to averages for the period 1979 to 2000) throughout most of the Arctic, the exceptions being the Bering Sea and the East Greenland Sea. Melt in the Kara and Barents seas began more than two weeks earlier than normal. Melt onset for the Laptev Sea region as a whole started on June 1 and was the earliest seen in the satellite record. Melt began 12 and 9 days earlier than normal averaged over the Beaufort and Chukchi seas, respectively.
Business is now worried
Global
Warming: Top Firms 'Fear Climate Change'
Major companies are increasingly
concerned that they are at risk from climate change in the face of recent
extreme weather events such as drought and floods, according to a report.
More than a third (37%) see the
physical risks of a changing climate such as extreme weather, rising sea levels
and water scarcity as a real and present danger, up from just 10% two years
ago, says the latest Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) survey of top global
companies.
Four-fifths (81%) identify climate
change risks to their business operations, supply chains and plans, up from 71%
last year.
Of the 379 of the 500 companies
who responded to the CDP's request for information about climate strategies and
emissions data, 78% say they are now integrating climate change into their
business strategy, up from 68% last year, the annual CDP Global 500 report
said.
K Leslie Graves Show So You Cannot Sleep Tell Why
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