New Antarctic process contributing to sea-level rise and climate change revealed, that “may trigger a transition from a cold regime to a warm regime, characterised by high rates of melting from the base of ice shelves”

24 April 2018 (University of Tasmania) – A new Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS)-led study has revealed a previously undocumented process where melting glacial ice sheets change the ocean in a way that further accelerates the rate of ice melt and sea level rise.Led by IMAS PhD student Alessandro Silvano and published in […]

Arctic has warmest winter on record – “It’s just crazy, crazy stuff. These heat waves – I’ve never seen anything like this.”

6 March 2018 (Associated Press) – The Arctic winter has ended with more news that is worrying even the scientists who watch the effects of climate change closely.The region experienced its warmest winter on record. Sea ice hit record lows for the time of year, new US weather data revealed on Tuesday.“It’s just crazy, crazy […]

Arctic sea ice extent sinks to new record low

6 February 2018 (NSIDC) – The new year was heralded by a week of record low daily ice extents, with the January average beating out 2017 for a new record low. Ice grew through the month at near-average rates, and in the middle of the month daily extents were higher than for 2017. However, by […]

Ozone at lower latitudes in continuous decline since 1980s, despite Antarctic ozone hole healing – “The potential for harm in lower latitudes may actually be worse than at the poles”

By Hayley Dunning 6 February 2018 (Imperial College London) – The ozone layer is recovering at the poles, but unexpected decreases in part of the atmosphere may be preventing recovery at lower latitudes. Global ozone has been declining since the 1970s owing to certain man-made chemicals. Since these were banned, parts of the layer have […]

For Valentine’s Day, UN environment wing is urging everyone to “break up” with single-use plastic

12 February 2018 (UN News) – In It’s not me, it’s you, a short video for its #CleanSeas campaign, the UN environment wing takes a lighter look at the very serious problem of marine litter and urges everyone to give up the use of single-use plastic products such as disposable cutlery, water-bottles, food containers, and […]

Microplastics pollute most remote and uncharted areas of the ocean

By Sandra Laville 12 February 2018 (The Guardian) – Microplastics have been found in some of the most remote and uncharted regions of the oceans raising more concerns over the global scale of plastic pollution. Samples taken from the middle of the South Indian Ocean – at latitude 45.5 degrees south – show microplastic particles […]

Record low sea-ice extent in the Chukchi Sea

6 December 2017 (NSIDC) – November 2017 will be remembered not for total Arctic ice extent, which was the third lowest recorded over the period of satellite observations, but for the record low extent in the Chukchi Sea. This is a key area for Arctic Ocean access, and is an indicator of oceanographic influences on […]

Arctic sea ice loss could dry out California – “The recent California drought appears to be a good illustration of what the sea-ice driven precipitation decline could look like”

5 Dcember 2017 (LLNL) – Arctic sea ice loss of the magnitude expected in the next few decades could impact California’s rainfall and exacerbate future droughts, according to new research led by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists.The dramatic loss of Arctic sea ice cover observed over the satellite era is expected to continue throughout […]

Warm waters melting Antarctic ice shelves may have appeared for the first time in more than 7,000 years

By Sev Kender 19 October 2017 (The Conversation) – The vast expanse of the Antarctic is a region of the world particularly vulnerable to climate change, where ice loss has the potential to significantly increase sea levels. Now, for possibly the first time in 7,000 years, a phenomenon known as “upwelling” (the upward flow of […]

More losers than winners for marine life in warmer Southern Ocean – “The future for a whole range of invertebrates from starfish to corals is bleak”

4 September 2017 (British Antarctic Survey) – A new study of the marine invertebrates living in the seas around Antarctica reveals there will be more ‘losers’ than ‘winners’ over the next century as the Antarctic seafloor warms.  The results are published today (4 September 2017) in the journal Nature Climate Change.A team at British Antarctic […]

Social media & sharing icons powered by UltimatelySocial