ice melt

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Glaciers May Vanish in 'Geologic Instant'

Prehistoric glacier's rapid meltdown could happen again: researchers

(Newser) - New data about a prehistoric Canadian glacier that rapidly vanished is giving scientists a stronger model to predict the radical effects of climate change. It's very possible that the same conditions could quickly shrink today's larger ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, prompting sea levels to soar in a "...

Warming Is Polar Bears' Top Killer, Host Nations Agree

US, Russia, Norway, Denmark and Canada sign joint statement on bear population

(Newser) - Five nations whose land is home to polar bears signed a joint statement today declaring global warming to be the biggest threat to the animals, AFP reports. Canada, Denmark/Greenland, Norway, Russia, and the US agree that “long-term conservation of polar bears depends upon successful mitigation of climate change,”...

Fishing Banned in Melting Arctic

Federal panel moves to block trawlers from newly accessible waters

(Newser) - A federal panel has voted to block fishing trawlers from moving into a vast area of the Arctic Sea made newly accessible by melting ice, the New York Times reports. The move will protect 150,000 square nautical miles of US waters north of the Bering Strait while scientists assess...

Arctic Ice at 2nd-Smallest Level

Melting amid cool conditions raises red flags

(Newser) - Arctic sea ice shrunk to its second-lowest size this summer, up 10% from last year's record, reports Reuters. The melting may not appear as noteworthy as that of 2007, said one research scientist, but the season's conditions prove otherwise. Last year's mix of warm air and favorable winds shifted the...

Scientists Spot Crack at Top of the World

Northern Hemisphere's largest floating glacier breaking up

(Newser) - A huge crack—seven miles long and a half-mile wide—has opened in a northern Greenland glacier as an 11-square-mile chunk of ice appears to be breaking off. The phenomenon is occurring in the Northern Hemisphere's largest floating glacier, once thought largely immune to the effects of global warming, reports...

Greens Blast Arctic 'Carve Up'
 Greens Blast Arctic 'Carve Up' 

Greens Blast Arctic 'Carve Up'

Environmentalists rip pending 'resource grab' after nations meet

(Newser) - Environmentalists are slamming an agreement reached at a closed-door meeting among nations with Arctic claims as a resource free-for-all, the Guardian reports. Ministers from the US, Canada, Russia, Denmark, and Norway insist they simply agreed to abide by the law of the sea—but green groups charge that the nations...

Huge New Cracks Seen in Arctic Ice Shelf

Giant ice shelf is falling apart and could float away

(Newser) - A Canadian expedition has found a major new network of cracks, more than 10 miles long, in the Arctic's ice shelves, the BBC reports. Scientists say the huge shelves are disintegrating; pieces become "ice islands" that can float hundreds of miles away as climate changes takes hold. Arctic sea...

Glacial Melt Hit Record in '06
 Glacial Melt Hit Record in '06 

Glacial Melt Hit Record in '06

Study finds glaciers lost an average of 4.9 feet of ice

(Newser) - Glaciers shrank an alarming average of 4.9 feet in 2006, the UN Environment Program says—a dramatic difference from ice loss numbers in the ‘80s and ‘90s, when glaciers lost an average 11.8 inches a year. UNEP’s director pointed to "many canaries in the...

Ice Melt Imperils Baby Seals
Ice Melt Imperils Baby Seals

Ice Melt Imperils Baby Seals

Climate change does a number on Baltic population

(Newser) - They’re cute, they’re endangered, and they’re some of global warming’s first casualties. Baby seals throughout the Baltic Sea are dying, Der Spiegel reports, as rising temperatures melt the protective dens they rely on to survive. “The situation is dramatic,” said one environmental activist. “...

Antarctica Speeds Into Trouble
Antarctica Speeds Into Trouble

Antarctica Speeds Into Trouble

Disturbing new discovery indicates climate change is accelerating

(Newser) - Parts of Antarctica thought to be unaffected by global warming are in fact melting as the temperature of the oceans rises, and in parts of the continent, annual ice loss has jumped 140% in the past decade, new research shows. Satellite mapping shows change on a previously unimagined scale, reports...

Arctic Melting Faster Than Worst-Case Predictions

'The Arctic is screaming,' says scientist

(Newser) - Greenland's Arctic ice melted at rates far surpassing any previous year in 2007, according to new data, indicating that the change is happening far faster than predicted. "The Arctic is screaming," said one scientist. If melting continues at this rate, the Arctic Ocean would be "nearly ice-free"...

Arctic Melt Nears 'Tipping Point'
Arctic Melt Nears 'Tipping Point'

Arctic Melt Nears 'Tipping Point'

Bigger, dark sea will melt what's left faster, scientists fear

(Newser) - Arctic ice has shrunk so significantly this past summer that scientists fear the region is at a dangerous "tipping point" that could trigger accelerated melting and dangerous consequences for weather patterns and environments. Ice shrank 20% below 2005’s record low. Scientists theorize that the darker sea holds more...

Tourism Heats Up as Arctic Does
Tourism Heats Up as Arctic Does

Tourism Heats Up as Arctic Does

Travelers flock to see dwindling ice caps, speeding up their destruction

(Newser) - The effects of global warming are drawing a crowd. About 1.5 million people will visit the arctic this year, as climate tourists swarm to see the world’s ice caps as they are beginning to melt. But it’s an ironic endeavor, the Wall Street Journal notes, because eco-tourists...

Sailors Find Iceless NW Passage
Sailors Find Iceless NW Passage

Sailors Find Iceless NW Passage

As ice thaws, yachts glide through Northwest Passage

(Newser) - It's smooth sailing in the Arctic nowadays. Even in recent years, the ice was apt to claim adventurers who dared navigate the Northwest Passage. This year the passage has no ice. And with global warming claiming some 38,000 square miles of ice a year, the Journal reports, the Arctic...

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