Arctic region warming fastest on earth
July 4th, 2011 - 12:02 pm ICT by IANSSydney, July 4 (IANS) Experts have warned that the Arctic region is warming at the fastest pace on earth because of rising air temperatures, more rainfall and decreasing snowfall, consequently melting sea ice.
James Screen, who led the study with Ian Simmonds, at the Melbourne University’s School of Earth Sciences, said that due to warming temperatures — on more days and in more parts of the polar region — temperatures are becoming too warm for protective snow to form.
“As a result of this temperature shift, we estimate that there has been a 40 percent decrease in summer snowfall over the last 20 years.”
“The reductions in snowfall in the summer months (when there is still typically significant snow in Arctic regions) have knock-on effects for the sea ice, the ice floating on top of the Arctic Ocean,” the journal Climate Dynamics quoted him as saying.
“Snow is highly reflective and bounces up to 85 percent of the incoming sunlight back into space. Snow on top of ice effectively acts as a sunscreen protecting the ice from the power of the sun rays,” said Screen.
“As the snow cover has decreased, more sea ice has become exposed to the sunlight, increasing the melting of the ice. Measurements show that the sea ice has been getting thinner and less extensive,” concluded Screen.
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- Why Antarctic sea ice is increasing despite warming climate - Aug 17, 2010
- NASA: Arctic's thickest ice diminishing faster than thin ice - Mar 01, 2012
- Sea ice loss major cause of warming in Arctic - Apr 29, 2010
- Warm ocean currents cause ice loss from Antarctica - Apr 26, 2012
- Thickest Arctic Sea ice melting much faster - Mar 01, 2012
- 'Within decade, Arctic Ocean will be ice-free each summer' - Oct 15, 2009
- Arctic sea ice level reaches second-lowest in history - Oct 06, 2011
- Climate change strips Arctic of much snow cover - May 05, 2011
- Arctic's sea ice melt hits second-lowest level - Oct 07, 2011
- Warming Earth 'could mean more toxins in environment' - Nov 10, 2010
Tags: air temperatures, arctic ocean, arctic region, arctic regions, climate dynamics, earth sciences, earth sydney, incoming sunlight, melbourne university, polar region, power of the sun, rainfall, sea ice, significant snow, simmonds, snow cover, snowfall, sun rays, sunscreen, temperature shift