According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2012 was one of the warmest years since global temperatures have been recorded. This was especially evident in the Arctic, where the effects of warmer temperatures led to several records being broken.
Ice in the Arctic sea reached record lows during the annual summer thaw. About 97% of the sea ice around Greenland melted, which is four times more than expected. So much ice has melted in the Arctic that a freshwater lake has formed at the North Pole. The ice in the Arctic has been shrinking back for decades and because it is also losing thickness, some scientists predict the Arctic Ocean to be essentially free of summer ice by 2020.
Other observations in the Arctic include a continuing rise in sea levels and falling ocean salinity. This July, temperatures over much of the Arctic Ocean were 2 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit higher than average.
These Arctic trends are fraught with dangers. Rising sea levels threaten coastal population centers around the world. Rapid thawing in the Arctic could lead to the release of enormous amounts of methane trapped in the permafrost. And changes in the salt balance in the oceans are leading to increases in precipitation in wet areas and intensified evaporation (and droughts) in drier locations.
The facts coming out of the Arctic tell us that our climate is continuing to change in increasingly worrisome ways.
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Web Links
Why 2012 Was a Bad Year for the Arctic and All of Us
http://www.care2.com/causes/why-2012-was-a-bad-year-for-the-arctic-and-all-of-us.html#ixzz2bZk3L2JS
Photo, taken on September 1, 2009, courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Support for Earth Wise comes from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY.