The author of today’s post, Lisa Moore, Ph.D., is a scientist in the Climate and Air program.
A frame from an Environmental Defense ad campaign about the danger of unchecked global warming.“Most Polar Bears Gone by 2050“. You may have seen that headline in the news this week. The study behind this depressing conclusion could land polar bears on the list of threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.
The author of today’s post, Sheryl Canter, is an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.
If you had any doubts that the globe is warming and the Arctic is melting, this month’s flag incident should put them to rest. A Russian submarine dove to the bottom of the Arctic Ocean to plant a flag in the seabed. Why? There’s oil and gas in the Arctic seabed, which is now becoming accessible due to global warming.
Russia is not the only country vying for Arctic rights. Canada and Denmark are arguing about rights to the Northwest Passage, and the U.S. is getting into the act as well. But unfortunately, more than just oil and gas will be exposed as the Arctic melts.
The author of today’s post, Lisa Moore, is a scientist in the Climate and Air Program.
Most people don’t realize it, but "black carbon" or soot – the same stuff that dirties up chimney flues and car mufflers – is a significant contributor to global warming. Today’s best estimates place it next in line behind the greenhouse gases CO2 and methane (see Table 2.13 in the IPCC report).
Soot particle under a microscope. Credit: D.M. Smith, University of Denver.
Guest blogger Lisa Moore, Ph.D., is a scientist in the Climate and Air Program.
There’s always something new in climate change research. This week, scientists described the risks of geo-engineering, proposed an efficient way to reduce Arctic climate change, and discussed options for decreasing deforestation in developing countries.
The second installment of the IPCC’s 4th Assessment on Climate Change, titled “Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability”, was released on April 6, 2007. In recognition of this report, I’m doing a weekly series called “Climate Dangers You May Not Know About“.
1. More Acidic Oceans
2. Drinking Water and Disease
3. Shifts in Lifecycle Timing
4. Drought and Violence
5. The Melting of the North Pole
The North Pole is surrounded by the huge Arctic Ocean. For millennia, that ocean has been covered by ice, but today that sea ice is rapidly melting. We’ve lost about 20 percent of summer sea ice since 1980 – an area equal to Texas, California and Montana combined – and it’s happening faster than we had predicted. The North Pole could be ice-free during summer months well before 2050.
Illustration by Steve Deyo, ©UCAR, based on research by NSIDC and NCAR.
A lot of press attention has been focused on how the loss of sea ice is threatening the polar bear. Much less attention has been paid to global impacts of this melting sea ice.
Arctic Villages
On permafrost for millennia
Falling into sea.
