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Arctic Thaw Set at 40% by 2050

Researchers put 40% of Arctic underwater by 2050

By Zach Samalin,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 7, 2007 6:47 PM CDT

(Newser) – At least 40% of the polar icecap will be gone by 2050, Seattle scientists predicted today, putting the meltdown way ahead of earlier predictions that so much ice would take a century to vanish. Greenhouse gases, which linger in the atmosphere for up to 50 years, are primarily responsible for the acceleration, the Seattle Times writes.

"I'm afraid to say a lot of the impacts in the next 30 to 40 years are already established," one scientist says–bad news for ice-dependent polar bears and walruses, as well as the environment at large. This year saw the lowest ice levels ever, and the start of an international race for territory still underwater.

Icebergs are seen off Greenland's eastern coast in this July 17, 2007 file photo near the arctic circle. Danish scientists aboard powerful icebreakers head for the Arctic ice pack north of Greenland on Sunday Aug. 12, 2007 seeking evidence to position Denmark in a race to claim the potentially vast...
Icebergs are seen off Greenland's eastern coast in this July 17, 2007 file photo near the arctic circle. Danish scientists aboard powerful icebreakers head for the Arctic ice pack north of Greenland on...   (Associated Press)
This is an undated handout photo of a polar bear taken in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  More than two-thirds of the world's polar bears will be killed off by 2050 - the species completely gone from Alaska - because of thinning sea ice from global warming in the Arctic,...
This is an undated handout photo of a polar bear taken in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. More than two-thirds of the world's polar bears will be killed off by 2050 - the species completely gone...   (Associated Press)
This satellite image released by NASA in 2005 shows the concentration of Arctic sea ice. There was less sea ice in the Arctic on Friday than ever before on record, and the melting is continuing, the National Snow and Ice Data Center reported.  (AP Photo/NASA)
This satellite image released by NASA in 2005 shows the concentration of Arctic sea ice. There was less sea ice in the Arctic on Friday than ever before on record, and the melting is continuing, the National...   (Associated Press)
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