Post by 🦍MAXX＞ⓤ on Aug 10, 2023 22:46:16 GMT -5
A ‘once every 7.5 million years’ event is currently unfolding in Antarctica:‘To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough’
In the past eight years, sea ice in Antarctica has reached a new record low four times, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports. The first three times, ice levels that have dropped in the summer have rebounded in the winter.
But this year — during what is currently winter in Antarctica — scientists have confirmed that the ice is not re-forming, leaving long stretches of the Antarctic coastline bare.
What’s happening?
According to physical oceanographer Edward Doddridge, this is the first time an event like this has been observed, the ABC reports — and it’s extremely unlikely to have happened on its own.
“To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough,” Doddridge told the ABC.“This is a five-sigma event.… Which means that if nothing had changed, we’d expect to see a winter like this about once every 7.5 million years.… There are people saying it could be natural variability … but it’s very unlikely.”
According to Doddridge and others, the most likely cause is human activity. People create air pollution through activities like burning fuel, and that pollution traps heat on our planet, heating up the atmosphere and the ocean. Some combination of warmer water and higher-energy weather patterns is likely what’s melting the ice, scientists told the ABC.
Why does the loss of Antarctic ice matter?
Polar ice is a major factor in the Earth’s “albedo,” which is the amount of light reflected from the surface instead of being absorbed. When there’s more ice, the planet’s albedo is higher, and the sun doesn’t warm it as quickly. When ice melts, the planet starts absorbing more heat.
www.yahoo.com/news/once-every-7-5-million-180000122.html
In the past eight years, sea ice in Antarctica has reached a new record low four times, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports. The first three times, ice levels that have dropped in the summer have rebounded in the winter.
But this year — during what is currently winter in Antarctica — scientists have confirmed that the ice is not re-forming, leaving long stretches of the Antarctic coastline bare.
What’s happening?
According to physical oceanographer Edward Doddridge, this is the first time an event like this has been observed, the ABC reports — and it’s extremely unlikely to have happened on its own.
“To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough,” Doddridge told the ABC.“This is a five-sigma event.… Which means that if nothing had changed, we’d expect to see a winter like this about once every 7.5 million years.… There are people saying it could be natural variability … but it’s very unlikely.”
According to Doddridge and others, the most likely cause is human activity. People create air pollution through activities like burning fuel, and that pollution traps heat on our planet, heating up the atmosphere and the ocean. Some combination of warmer water and higher-energy weather patterns is likely what’s melting the ice, scientists told the ABC.
Why does the loss of Antarctic ice matter?
Polar ice is a major factor in the Earth’s “albedo,” which is the amount of light reflected from the surface instead of being absorbed. When there’s more ice, the planet’s albedo is higher, and the sun doesn’t warm it as quickly. When ice melts, the planet starts absorbing more heat.
www.yahoo.com/news/once-every-7-5-million-180000122.html
I will keep you updated!
