Sea ice is melting at a rapid pace, the Arctic Ocean is getting warmer and less salty and reindeer herds are declining, experts revealed in a report released Thursday. The Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover, N.H. warns that people should take notice, because the planet is interconnected and what happens in the Arctic will affect the rest of the world.
MSNBC gives details of the third annual Arctic Report Card for the federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:
“There continues to be widespread and, in some cases, dramatic evidence of an overall warming of the Arctic system,” the experts stated in their report.
Compiled by 46 scientists from 10 countries, the report looks at six areas in the Arctic: atmosphere, sea ice, Greenland, ocean, biology and land. It found a “warming” trend in the first three signals and “mixed” signals in the latter three.
“Changes in the Arctic show a domino effect from multiple causes more clearly than in other regions,” said James Overland, an oceanographer at NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle. “It’s a sensitive system and often reflects changes in relatively fast and dramatic ways.”
For example, autumn air temperatures in the Arctic are at a record 9 degrees Fahrenheit above normal.
The report noted that 2007 was the warmest year on record the Arctic, leading to a record loss of sea ice. This year’s sea ice melt was second only to 2007.
The study also noted a warming trend on land, with an increase in greenness as shrubs move north into areas that were formerly permafrost. Other findings include increased warming in Greenland, an unprecedented rate of sea level rise, a decline in reindeer herds and increasing goose populations. Experts stress that increased solar output only accounts for about 10 percent of global warming, saying “You can’t use solar to say that greenhouse gases are not a major factor.”
Still in denial?
Link [MSNBC]
Photo credit: Bob Strong/Reuters
