Arctic Meltdown : A Very Big Deal

Found at : Green Man

It continues to astonish me that environmental reporters cannot pick up the Arctic meltdown ball and run with it.

The trend in meltdown in the northernmost latitudes is a very big deal – and it’s ongoing, it hasn’t stopped, gone into remission or gone away.

The nature of the ice is changing – so much so that scientific monitoring equipment was confused.

It is now clear that Arctic summer sea ice is in a “death spiral”, a phrase first used very recently, in an attempt to properly describe what is happening :-

http://tamino.wordpress.com/2010/09/14/death-spiral/

Cold Focus : Disturbing Trends

After several key projects to alert the general public to the melting of the Arctic, some have concluded that pictures of unusual calving icebergs, sea ice scans and time lapse series of glacier disappearance are not enough, not sufficient, to make the case.

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Sea Ice Not In Recovery

Watch it while it all melts away…this isn’t modelling, it’s data :-

http://arctic.atmos.uiuc.edu/cryosphere/

http://climateprogress.org/2010/05/21/arctic-sea-ice-area-extent-volume-record-low/

http://psc.apl.washington.edu/ArcticSeaiceVolume/IceVolume.php

http://www.skepticalscience.com/news.php?p=2&t=73&&n=182

http://scienceblogs.com/stoat/2010/05/three-views-on-sea-ice.php?utm_source=sbhomepage&utm_medium=link&utm_content=channellink

http://psc.apl.washington.edu/IDAO/rothrock_zhang_2004JC002282.pdf

Goldilocks and the Melting Arctic

It seems, sadly, that Richard Betts of the UK’s Met Office has fallen for the “Goldilocks Fallacy”. In attempting to dismiss what he sees as alarmist claims, yet prevent sceptics or deniers getting a toehold; trying to steer a safe, middle course on the truth of Global Warming in the Arctic, he appears to have misquoted the evidence :-

http://climateprogress.org/2010/01/12/sciencerichard-betts-andy-revkin-dramatic-decline-in-arctic-sea-ice-in-2007-was-not-reversed-in-2008-2009-recovery/

Fearmongering may not be the correct response to this patently serious change in the Arctic Sea Ice, in fact, social management should be avoided at all cost; but telling the truth should be paramount, even if that rocks boats.

Arctic Meltdown : Methane Eruptions

Video Credit : The Guardian

[ PLEASE NOTE : The animation is dated 6th April 2009, so the text in the sub-titles means the year 2008 when it says "last year". ]

European Winter 2009-2010 is turning out to be a bit parky – best not to go outside unless you can help it (or you’re under the age of 10 and love snowball fights).

However, wintry as it may be in Europe, the Arctic region is experiencing slush-inducing temperatures, and once-frozen sub-sea permafrost is starting to warm up, rot and give off methane. Lots of it :-

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/01/more-methane-discovered-bubbling-up-arctic-sea-floor.php

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Arctic Meltdown : Sooner Than We Think

The Pliocene, the era in Earth History formerly known as the Pleiocene, is being treated as a potential “analogue” for our Globally Warmed world.

Several strands of Climate Change Science research have been undertaken in recent months, and they are all coming up with dismal results.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is the latest to unleash data on us :-

http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=2372&from=rss_home

“Arctic Could Face Warmer and Ice-Free Conditions : There is increased evidence that the Arctic could face seasonally ice-free conditions and much warmer temperatures in the future. Scientists documented evidence that the Arctic Ocean and Nordic Seas were too warm to support summer sea ice during the mid-Pliocene warm period (3.3 to 3 million years ago). This period is characterized by warm temperatures similar to those projected for the end of this century, and is used as an analog to understand future conditions…“In looking back 3 million years, we see a very different pattern of heat distribution than today with much warmer waters in the high latitudes,” said USGS scientist Marci Robinson. “The lack of summer sea ice during the mid-Pliocene suggests that the record-setting melting of Arctic sea ice over the past few years could be an early warning of more significant changes to come.”…”

Feeling strangely perturbed ? That would be your internal paradigms spinning.

Gore Was Mostly Right

Al Gore speak at the December 2009 Climate Talks in Copenhagen this week, and you would not believe how he got mauled by the Media and the Denier-Sceptics. Watch and listen to the links below and consider if you can detect the part that stuck in the throat of those who resist putting a halt to Global Warming.

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Meltdown : Painting by Numbers