Arctic Ice Shrinks to All-time Low, Could Disappear by 2030 !!!

May 20, 2006

Arctic Ice Shrinks to All-time Low, Could Disappear by 2030

Arctic ice reached an all-time low in March 2006, according to new

figures released by the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center

(NSIDC), threatening wildlife and causing scientists to wonder if

global warming has already reached the point of no return.

Satellite measurements for March show approximately 300,000 square

kilometers less sea ice in the Arctic Ocean than at the same time last

year. That's an area bigger than the United Kingdom.

" It's a pretty stark drop, " said Dr. Walt Meier, a researcher at the

center, as reported in The Guardian. " In the winter the ice tends to

be pretty stable, so the last three years, with this steady decline,

really stick out. "

Typically, ice in the Arctic Ocean melts during the summer and

refreezes over the winter, but for the past few years too little ice

has frozen over the winter to compensate for the summer thaw. As a

result, the amount of ice has been shrinking gradually, but the rate

at which the ice is disappearing is now accelerating rapidly.

Scientists are worried that If the current cycle continues, all of the

ice in the Arctic Ocean could melt permanently by 2030.

Large expanses of ice, like those usually found in the Arctic, reflect

much of the sun's heat and radiation back into the atmosphere, helping

to regulate the surface temperature of the Earth. As the amount of ice

shrinks, more of the sun's heat reaches the ocean and the planet's

surface, melting even more ice and making it hard for the water to

freeze again.

Does that mean we've reached the " tipping point " with global warming?

Meier thinks it just might.

" People have tried to think of ways we could get back to where we

were, " he said. " We keep going further and further into the hole, and

it's getting harder and harder to get out of it. "

More information:

Meltdown fear as Arctic ice cover falls to record winter low (The

Guardian)

Winter Sea Ice Fails to Recover, Down to Record Low (NSIDC)

All About Sea Ice (NSIDC)

NSIDC Sea Ice Index

SOURCE:

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