Polar science news in brief

Environ Earth Sci 2013

David Carlson

1  

Summary

Despite complexity and uncertainty, a compelling message emerges from evidence presented here: ice of some form (sea ice, glacier ice, snow) erodes or reduces or disappears, largely as a consequence of changes in atmosphere and ocean, with the result that global atmosphere and ocean systems change. As I write this, a predicted equatorial Pacific warm event (El Nino in ENSO terms) has unexpectedly paused. Or stopped. Or, perhaps even reversed? At the same time there occurs in polar regions: extreme Arctic sea ice loss, extraordinary Greenland surface melt, record Arctic Ocean temperatures, steady decline in Antarctic bottom water, continuing decrease in northern hemisphere snow coverage, ... Should we regard emerging uncertainties in tropical systems and changes in polar systems as coincidence? I think not. Anchors of the climate system at the warm (equatorial) and cold (polar) ends have come loose. In what directions will the system drift? With what consequences for ecosystems and humanity? It remains challenging to determine cause from correlation and to quantify trends amidst variability, but we can anticipate the general directions and we know the major players: ocean, wind and ice.

DOI 10.1007/s12665-012-2185-y

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs12665-012-2185-y