Arctic could be ice-free in summer in 15 years: scientists

[sasha031]

Scientists say dramatic recent melting of sea ice in the Arctic may lead to the lowest level yet of ocean ice cover in the Arctic this summer, and warn drastic changes to the northern ecosystem could result.More than 120 scientists from nearly a dozen nations are attending the meeting of the Canadian Arctic Shelf Exchange Study in Winnipeg this week.The group, which conducted research over the past three years in the High Arctic, is releasing its findings, including studies from a year spent on board the Amundsen research icebreaker.

University of Manitoba sea-ice specialist Dr. David Barber estimates that the sea-ice cover in the Arctic is now decreasing by 74,000 square kilometres a year.He says last year the extent of Arctic sea ice shrunk to the lowest level recorded by satellites, to a minimum he says that has never been seen before in modern times.Barber says he's now worried that 2006 could be worse."That minimum extent is going to be surrounded by ocean and that surrounding ocean is all going to be absorbing short-wave radiation from the sun, and it's going to all warm up that surface layer and it's going to be harder to form the ice the next year."
http://www.cbc.ca/north/story/arctic-ice-15022006.html

[Burried News]

1. Time to patent my snowmobile to skidoo conversion kit. nt

[phantom power]

2. Well... I'm sure THAT won't have any unpredictable consequences...

:eyes:

[rpannier]

3. And sadly the America public won't pay attention because

they don't see the water rushing over US land today.

[YankeyMCC]

4. So when will Halliburton get the contract

to build new seaside resorts or naval bases more likely since we'll need to fight off the incoming hordes who so foolishly built their lives for generations on land that would flood as soon as we melted the ice caps?

:sarcasm: