Arctic changes could spell dire consequences
January 31st, 2012 - 2:59 pm ICT by IANSSydney, Jan 31 (IANS) The first signs of dangerous climate change in the Arctic could spell dire consequences for the whole of humankind, scientists warn.
The Arctic has been warming at three times the global average and the loss of sea ice, which had melted faster in summer than predicted, was linked tentatively to recent extreme cold winters in Europe.
But there’s more to come and in a manner that has not been highlighted before.
University of Western Australia researchers say the Arctic region is fast approaching a series of imminent “tipping points” that could trigger an abrupt domino effect of large-scale climate change across the entire planet, the Swedish journal AMBIO and Nature Climate Change report.
“There is evidence that these forces are starting to be set in motion. This has major consequences for the future of humankind as climate change progresses,” said Carlos Duarte, professor and director of the university’s Oceans Institute.
Researchers suggest that the loss of Arctic summer sea ice, most likely over the next four decades, if not before, was expected to have abrupt knock-on effects on cities including Beijing, Tokyo, London, Moscow, Berlin and New York, according to a varsity statement.
Duarte, winner of last year’s prestigious Prix d’Excellence awarded by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, said Arctic records showed unambiguously that sea ice volume had declined dramatically over the past two decades.
- Arctic region warming fastest on earth - Jul 04, 2011
- Arctic sea ice shrinks to smallest ever - Aug 28, 2012
- Arctic ice melt prelude to severe winters - Jun 07, 2012
- Arctic Sea could become iceless by century-end - Oct 12, 2011
- Arctic ice melt likely to stabilise - Aug 12, 2011
- Thickest Arctic Sea ice melting much faster - Mar 01, 2012
- Arctic sea ice level reaches second-lowest in history - Oct 06, 2011
- Arctic sea ice hits second-lowest level - Oct 05, 2011
- NASA: Arctic's thickest ice diminishing faster than thin ice - Mar 01, 2012
- GPS helps detect 100 billion tonne ice loss! - Jul 25, 2012
- Arctic ice could vanish within 10 years: Scientists - Aug 13, 2012
- Arctic's sea ice melt hits second-lowest level - Oct 07, 2011
- Arctic ice could affect climate change - Sep 07, 2012
- 'Precipitation, river discharges increase climate change' - Sep 06, 2012
- Arctic sea ice to melt by 2015: Expert - Nov 10, 2011
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