Arctic expert predicts final collapse of sea ice within four years
A map showing Arctic sea ice on August 26 2012, the line on the image shows the average minimum ice cover from 1979-2010, as measured by satellites
Peter Wadhams of Cambridge University has predicted the final collapse of Arctic sea ice in summer months within four years. I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Wadhams, who is one of the world’s leading sea ice experts, at the International Polar Year Summit in Montreal back in April. He recently wrote an email to the Guardian newspaper in the U.K. stating that “Climate change is no longer something we can aim to do something about in a few decades’ time, and that we must not only urgently reduce CO2 emissions but must urgently examine other ways of slowing global warming, such as the various geoengineering ideas that have been put forward.”
Wadhams says the implications are “terrible”. “As the sea ice retreats in summer the ocean warms up (to 7C in 2011) and this warms the seabed too. The continental shelves of the Arctic are composed of offshore permafrost, frozen sediment left over from the last ice age. As the water warms the permafrost melts and releases huge quantities of trapped methane, a very powerful greenhouse gas so this will give a big boost to global warming.”
Read the Guardian article here: Arctic expert predicts final collapse of sea ice within four years | Environment | guardian.co.uk.
