Summer sees fastest Arctic melt yet
The Arctic icecap has receded to its smallest size since records began, following warm summer temperatures, according to a new report by the US National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC).
The NSIDC’s Dr Mark Serreze said that an area almost twice the size of Britain melted during one week in August, leaving the fabled Northwest Passage along the coast of Canada fully navigable for the first time. If melting continues, the Northeast Passage along Russia’s Arctic coast could also become passable before long.
The new figures show that the ice cover has shrunk to 4.4 million square kilometres, beating the previous all-time low of 5.3 million square kilometres in September 2005 – and it’s still shrinking. Serreze suggests that the entire Arctic region could become ice-free by 2030 if the melting continues at a similar rate.
However, Met Office climate scientist Jeff Ridley attributes the melting to the same weather system that influenced the UK’s summer climate. ‘This could simply be a fluctuation in the oceanic heat transported into the Arctic or atmospheric circulation patterns,’ he said. ‘There has been a sustained high-pressure system over the Western Arctic this summer, and the abnormally low ice cover in the region may be attributed to this weather system. I don’t consider this year’s low ice extent to be “alarming” or “surprising” simply because such variability is to be expected.’
November 2007
The NSIDC’s Dr Mark Serreze said that an area almost twice the size of Britain melted during one week in August, leaving the fabled Northwest Passage along the coast of Canada fully navigable for the first time. If melting continues, the Northeast Passage along Russia’s Arctic coast could also become passable before long.
The new figures show that the ice cover has shrunk to 4.4 million square kilometres, beating the previous all-time low of 5.3 million square kilometres in September 2005 – and it’s still shrinking. Serreze suggests that the entire Arctic region could become ice-free by 2030 if the melting continues at a similar rate.
However, Met Office climate scientist Jeff Ridley attributes the melting to the same weather system that influenced the UK’s summer climate. ‘This could simply be a fluctuation in the oceanic heat transported into the Arctic or atmospheric circulation patterns,’ he said. ‘There has been a sustained high-pressure system over the Western Arctic this summer, and the abnormally low ice cover in the region may be attributed to this weather system. I don’t consider this year’s low ice extent to be “alarming” or “surprising” simply because such variability is to be expected.’
November 2007
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