Rapid Arctic Sea Ice Melt from Above
Filed under: Discovery,News & Resources
The Arctic Ocean is becoming more active as the region continues to lose sea ice at an alarming rate. This typically quiet ocean has started churning and mixing more than usual, according to a study published in the latest issue of Geophysical Research Letters.
(From Discovery News) — Scientists are concerned that these changes in ocean movement could be speeding up the melting of Arctic sea ice. During a two-week period in summer 2007, Arctic sea ice declined as much as 81,081 square miles per day.
Satellite images have captured stark evidence over the years that show the shrinking sea ice in the Arctic Ocean, as well as retreating glaciers on land. Here, we present a few hot spots.
The Beaufort Sea, one of the outermost seas of the Arctic Ocean, is a vital hunting ground for polar bears, which depend on thick, vast ice sheets to raise their young and protect themselves. These satellite images show the extent to which the animals are losing their habitat.
Credit: USGS
The town of Barrow, Alaska sits on the coast of the Beaufort Sea. Typically, ice forms along the coast in the winter, and then melts or breaks away by mid-July. These satellite images show that the ice melting in this area has dramatically increased over time.
Credit: USGS
According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center, ice melting in the East Siberian Sea, also a part of the Arctic Ocean, spiked to a degree not seen in the history of satellite recording.
The Bering Glacier is the largest and longest glacier in continental North America. These satellite images show the glacier has retreated more than three miles and has thinned by more than 200 feet from 1996 to 2005.
Credit: USGS
These images of the South Cascade Glacier in Washington state show a steady retreat from 2000 to 2006. This rapid melting can threaten low-lying and coastal towns and communities.
Credit: USGS
Some satellite images were acquired through a team effort from the U.S.’s top spies and climate experts. The New York Times reported that spy satellites and some of the world’s most cutting-edge intelligence-gathering equipment are used to study the effects of climate change through CIA data-sharing programs.
Source: USGS/NASA Earth Observatory
