But is ice really melting? This is a widely reported phenomenon, like many others related to global warming, caused attacks by so-called climate skeptics, and get to the bottom of what is really happening with icy caps, not very simple. 
Photo from open sources Ice drifts in the Arctic the ocean. There is heated debate among skeptics and scientists about whether or not ice is growing. Photo courtesy of NOAA News Steve Goreham, executive director of the american climate coalition, wrote a recent article in response to a PBC news broadcast (Service Public Broadcasting) of September 20 to reduce the icy Arctic caps. The author of the book “This crazy, crazy world. Climatism: Humanity and the Mania of Climate Change, “Goreham accused PBC of ignoring the obvious facts. is he explained that the Arctic ice does melt, but they make up only about 2% of the world’s ice, while 90% of the ice is in ice cap, which according to National Snow and Ice Data Center, increasing. Does it mean that everything okay with polar ice? Professor Veijo Pojola, glaciologist from Uppsala University in Sweden, said: “Key facts The article is correct, but, as always, when dealing with self-taught (Goreham is not a specialist in this field), errors occur. ” Pohjola explained that sea ice is ice drifting in the oceans, and ice sheet and glaciers on land live completely self life. The state and volume of sea ice varies greatly in depending on the season, while ice sheets and glaciers change very slowly. It is true that the Antarctic ice sheet contains most of the world’s ice, but it is on continent, and the Arctic ice is completely sea ice. In the Antarctic there is also some sea ice, the volume of which is insignificant has grown over the past 30 years, by about 1%. For the same period, the volume of arctic sea ice decreased by 4%. Can it seems that the difference is small, but it has significant value. “A statement that in ten years there will be no ice in the Arctic in the summer season, you can’t even be considered pessimistic, “said Pohol. In scientific circles there is a controversy surrounding the question of whether Antarctic ice growth is of strategic importance. Goreham says that yes, and Pohjola agrees with him on this matter, but believes that more research is needed to understand why this going on. In any case, Pohjola says, the current climate models predict global warming effects in the Arctic manifest faster and more obvious. The reason is that ocean currents like the Gulf Stream are like a warm track water stretching from the equator to the Arctic, while the ocean currents around Antarctica are of a different nature, and there such a large heat exchange does not occur. In Greenland ice breaks off So, let’s forget for a while about the fate of the polar bears if most of the world’s ice in ice sheets, and the Antarctic ice sheet is actually growing, doesn’t it it is that there is no threat that the world will be under water as a result of melting polar ice caps? Pohjola says that reality is much more complicated. “85% of the world’s glacial ice located in the Antarctic, but the remaining 15% is enough to raise ocean level at 7-8 meters, so I believe that the public should know about it, “Pohzhola notes. Most of these 15% are on the island of Greenland in the Arctic, where in recent dramatic events take place for several years – large pieces of ice Chipped and carried into the ocean. This, Pohjola believes, is perhaps due to the fact that the ice sheet is undermined by the increased ocean water temperature. Moreover, this phenomenon is also observed. in western Antarctica. The ice sheet in eastern Antarctica is somewhat increased due to increased rainfall, which is also a result global warming. However, the western part, as shown gravimetric studies, has lost six times the mass. However, it is very difficult to measure, Pohjola said. Goreham Theme considers that there are “various conclusions, “and he is skeptical of gravimetric research. “Gravimetric measurements from NASA GRACE satellites showed great errors and did not give anything, beyond all doubt, he said. – In addition, scientists have gravimetric data only a few years. Such data subject to short-term fluctuations and cannot evaluate what happened in Greenland or Antarctica during decades. “Is ice still growing or decreasing? Goreham believes that the ice in Greenland “melts only around the edges due to Earth’s natural warming after the Little Ice Age, but in the center, the ice sheet becomes thicker due to the increase in snow. ” He gives as an example a group of aircraft left in Greenland in 1942, which were discovered at 270 ft. a layer of ice. “This reflects a misunderstanding of the dynamics of the movement of ice, – notes Pohjola. – Even if the ice sheet loses weight, its top the part will always accumulate mass while the ice moves down to the ocean exit. This means that Greenland may lose incredible masses of ice, but planes will sink and skid snow, “he remarked. This skirmish between skeptics and those who can be said to represent the predominant direction in science and who are nicknamed the “climatists” leaves the layman in confusion. Pohjola believes that, as a scientist, he should try to present complex scientific data as clearly as possible, especially on such an important and controversial issue as global warming. “This is the only way to build trust.” public, said Pohjola. – Extremists on both sides climatic debates rarely heed scientific arguments. They accept our cautious statements and uncertainty as a sign that we don’t really know. But they don’t understand our way reasoning. “” We can summarize all the signs that we note in present, with the saying: “If someone walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then maybe it’s a duck, “” the scientist added.
Antarctica Arctic Water Time Global Warming Greenland Climate Snow
