Antarctica

By Edward Hanna

Winter Sea Ice in Antarctica’s Southern Ocean is in Disturbing Decline: 200 Scientists Sound Alarm

By Andrew J Constable, University of Tasmania and Jess Melbourne-Thomas, CSIRO | – (The Conversation) – While the Southern Ocean around Antarctica has been warming for decades, the annual extent of winter sea ice seemed relatively stable – compared to the Arctic. In some areas Antarctic sea ice was even increasing. That was until 2016, […]

Antarctica

Fractured Foundations: how Antarctica’s ‘landfast’ Ice is Dwindling and why that’s bad News

The Conversation

By Alexander Fraser, University of Tasmania; Christine Weldrick, University of Tasmania; Laura Dalman, University of Tasmania; Matthew Corkill, University of Tasmania and Pat Wongpan, University of Tasmania | – There’s more to Antarctic ice than meets the eye. Sea ice is not a uniform crust overlying the salty Southern Ocean. Our new research is the […]

Antarctica

Antarctica’s Heart of Ice has skipped a Beat. The only Medicine is Halting Fossil Fuels

The Conversation

By Edward Doddridge, University of Tasmania | – (The Conversation) – The rhythmic expansion and contraction of Antarctic sea ice is like a heartbeat. But lately, there’s been a skip in the beat. During each of the last two summers, the ice around Antarctica has retreated farther than ever before. And just as a change […]

Antarctica

New Research shows how rapidly Ice Sheets can Retreat: Antarctica’s Melt alone could raise Sea Level 171 Feet

The Conversation

By Christine Batchelor, Newcastle University and Frazer Christie, University of Cambridge | – The Antarctic Ice Sheet, which covers an area greater than the US and Mexico combined, holds enough water to raise global sea level by more than 57 metres if melted completely. This would flood hundreds of cities worldwide. And evidence suggests it […]

Antarctica

The Antarctic Ice Sheet is Melting. And this is bad News for Humanity

The Conversation

By Marta Moreno Ibáñez, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) | – (The Conversation) – Ottawa’s famous Rideau Canal, which turns into the world’s largest ice rink every winter, is too thin to open this winter. Antarctic sea ice concentration reached a record low on Feb. 13. The orange line represents the median sea ice […]

Antarctica

Arctic and Antarctic Ice Sheets in Danger if we blow Past Paris Limit of 1.5° C. (2.7° F) extra Heating

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Jun-Young Park et al. write in Nature Communications that the collapse of the Arctic and Antarctic ice sheets may come sooner than climate scientists had expected if humanity misses the Paris Climate Treaty goal of keeping extra global heating to 2.7° F. (1.5° C ) above the pre-industrial average. Humanity […]

Antarctica

Do we Have Until 2050 to become Carbon Neutral? What if 27 Climate Feedback Loops are Working together to Shorten our Deadline?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Feedback loops are central notions in science. There are two kinds, negative and positive. Negative feedback loops, despite their name, are actually good if you are looking for stability. So for instance say you are too hot, so you sweat. The sweat evaporates, cooling you off. In fact, it could […]

Antarctica

More Evidence that the Massive Thwaites Glacier is Melting Fast, Threatening the world’s Coasts

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica is in the news again. We are fascinated with it because it is the Godzilla of glaciers, 80 miles across and as massive as Florida. If the ice sheet holding it back were to melt, and if Thwaites plopped into the ocean, it would all […]