Skip to content

SciTech

How do we face up to ice loss?

by Dave Armstrong 21 Mar 2015
How do we face up to ice loss?

February 25th was such a low for ice that we have waited almost a month to see if this Arctic ice will build, but it didn’t!The orange line on the map shows 1981-2010 median extent for ice at this date; Credit: © NSIDCimage

With our annual updates from NOAA on the lack of summer ice, we can join in with the National Snow and Ice Data Center(amazingly based in Boulder, Colorado,US) reports, which are weekly, if you really want to know. The significance is that these results from February 25th show the greatest extent of winter ice. The trouble is that it is the lowest ever measured at 14.54 million km2. That is 5.61 million square miles of ice, with only Labrador (Eastern Canada) and the Davis Strait maintaining normal ice states. This is a lot of ice, but it is 7.6% down on the average! And 7.6% adds up to a huge 1.1million km2

Limited though the conversations about ice might be, we can’t ignore the feedback that will affect plant, animal and human activity. The max is normally reached 15 days later than this year’s date, which is why we have been waiting for mid-March. However, hoping for ice to grow is almost as bad as watching paint dry. The Bering Sea continued some growth while the Barents and Kara Seas didn’t.Just take a last look at the ice in the Baltic! The surprising record growth of ice last winter was not repeated, obviously, largely because of the jet stream over the Pacific Arctic. We have all been influenced by that darn jet stream. Some of us get warmer weather and many get it cold!

The eastern Arctic had a really warm spell at the beginning of March, which must influence more than just the melting ice. Temperatures of 8-10oC. above average warmed up the Barents Sea between Svalbad and Franz Josef Land. April will see whether there has been any alteration is these deeply warming trends. It is very likely that the Arctic will begin a series of falling dominoes, leading to unrecognisable climates, unpredictable storms and great damage to ecosystems and people. The domino effect is not obvious, but climatologists can help with models to predict some facets of this global warming. Now that we have all suffered climate change, distractors can’t delay our actions any longer. The sheer terror of giant storms, the lack of agricultural produce, the interminable droughts and the unexpected floods. Why did ignorant politicians persist in trying to divert us away from these problems?

Now is the time to watch these ice movements, measure the summer heat and retain more of our water supplies. Fighting ignorance is only one of the primary problems. Technology, and a lot of financial contribution is being applied. We need to be certain to correct these climatic variables as far as is (humanly) possible. NSIDC report here with their weekly and watery summaries.

A recent report on the 2012 summer ice minimum and the correlation with actual ice advance in Antarctica was given in Ice melts at both poles. NOAA’s report on the 2012 summer ice minimum was here in 2012. It should be interesting to compare the map in this story with the NSIDC map today.


Trending Eco-Friendly Clothing

Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Love My Planet women's eco-friendly relaxed fit hoodieSize Guide Centimeters 8 10 12 14 16 18 Bust 84 88 92 97 103 108 Waist 66 70 75 80 85 91 Hips 91 95 99 104 109 116 Bust: Measure around the fullest part of...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Penguins Hate Push-Ups men's eco-friendly pullover HoodieSize Guide Centimeters XS S M L XL XXL Height 171 175 179 183 189 195 Chest 86 93 99 104 116 129 Waist 71 76 81 89 99 112 Chest: Measure all round your chest just below...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Lightning Bolt kids eco-friendly long sleeve t-shirtSize Guide Centimeters 3-4yrs 5-6yrs 7-8yrs 9-10yrs 11-12yrs Height 98 112 125 136 147 Chest 60 66 70 75 84 Chest: Measure all around your chest just below your armpits. Height: Your natural height If you fall between...
£18.00
£18.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Union Jack eco-friendly colour tote bagProduct Specification Organic Cotton Tote Bag. Twill Weave (170gsm). 37 x 42 cm (7cm gusset.) Made in India / Designed on the Isle of Wight. Wash Cool, Hang Dry.
£16.00
£16.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Prev Post
Next Post

Eco-Friendly Shop

Women's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Women Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable women’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Men's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Men Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable men’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Kids Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothes for Kids Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable kids clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies and jumpers. Our garments...
Shop Now
Someone recently bought a
[time] ago, from [location]

Thanks for subscribing!

This email has been registered!

Shop the look

Choose Options

Earth Times
Sign up for exclusive updates, new arrivals & insider only discounts

Recently Viewed

Edit Option
Back In Stock Notification
this is just a warning
Login
Shopping Cart
0 items

Before you leave...

Take 20% off your first order

20% off

Enter the code below at checkout to get 20% off your first order

CODESALE20

Continue Shopping