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Arctic sea ice extent second lowest on record mongabay.com April 4, 2007 Winter sea ice in the Arctic was the second smallest area on record, narrowly missing the 2006 mark, according to scientists from the University of Colorado's National Sea and Ice Data Center (NSIDC).
Walt Meier, an NSIDC researcher, blamed rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and strong natural variability in the ice for the decline. "This year's wintertime low extent is another milestone in a strong downward trend," said Meier. "We're still seeing near-record lows (in sea ice) and higher-than-normal temperatures, and we expect this downward trend to continue in future years." A study published last month by NSIDC scientist Mark Serreze in the journal Science showed that "sea-ice extent trends have been negative for every month since 1979, when reliable satellite record-keeping efforts began." Since that year sea ice extent has fallen by about 7 percent or about 38,000 square miles (98,000 sq km) of ice annually. Scientists are concerned that the Arctic may be approaching a point where sea ice melt could rapidly accelerate. "Melting ice means more of the dark ocean is exposed, allowing it to absorb more of the sun's energy, further increasing air temperatures, ocean temperatures, and ice melt," said CU-Boulder scientist Ted Scambos in a statement last October. "It seems that this feedback, which is a major reason for the pronounced effects of greenhouse warming in the arctic, is really starting to kick in." "I'm not terribly optimistic about the future of the ice," Serreze added. "As greenhouse gases continue to rise, the Arctic will continue to lose its ice. You just can't argue with the physics." Research published in the December 12 issue of Geophysical Research Letters. warned that the Arctic Ocean could have ice-free summers by 2040, putting polar bears and other species at risk. This article is based on a news release from NSIDC and previous mongabay.com articles Comments? News options Liquid error: Template not found languages/english/includes/x/_93.liquid
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