Latest news with #NationalSnowandIceDataCenter
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Researchers sound alarm as concerning phenomenon threatens water supply for more than 90 million people: 'The situation is serious'
The glaciers of the Andes Mountains are melting at alarming rates, which could lead to permanent water loss, threatening the water supply of over 90 million people, Cosmos magazine reported. Scientists at the University of Sheffield, England, who have been studying the reduction of Andes glaciers, found that the glaciers have been receding at a rate of 0.7 meters (about 2.3 feet) per year, as relayed by That is 35% quicker than the global average. Burning dirty energy sources releases harmful heat-trapping gases, such as carbon and methane, that contribute to rising global temperatures and melting glaciers. Warmer temperatures also mean that during the region's wet season (typically around December to April), the precipitation that falls is rain and less snowfall, resulting in less snowpack on the glaciers. The Andes mountain communities depend on snowmelt runoff during the dry season (around May to October) for freshwater supply, which is threatened by rising global temperatures and the subsequent lack of snow. This loss is compounded by the shrinking glaciers, which lead to permanent water losses in the region. While the immediate, short-term effect of melting glaciers is an increase in water flow from the mountains to the rivers, that water supply runs off freely to the lower areas of the mountains. Unusually fast-melting snow could become dangerous for nearby mountain communities, which may experience destructive flooding downstream, per the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Without water catchment systems to catch and store the melting snow runoff, mountain communities may see their fresh water supply decrease and permanently disappear from the region. Communities with fewer resources to build these water catchment systems have no agency in securing their water supply. As the glaciers melt, too, the darker rock face on the mountains becomes exposed, absorbing more of the sun's heat, which becomes a hopeless cycle for rapid glacier melting. Scientists have also studied the harmful effects of glacier melting on the environment. For example, melting glaciers release the ancient methane gas trapped in underground reservoirs in the Arctic, which were capped by permafrost glaciers. As the glaciers melt, the trapped gas gets released back into the atmosphere, acting as a bubble, trapping heat on the planet. How often do you worry about the quality of your drinking water? Never Sometimes Often Always Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Morocco recently celebrated a remarkable recovery from significant water supply loss in the nation. Taking advantage of the increased rainfall in the region, Morocco built 130 dams to increase the nation's water storage capacity — which has since increased by 700%. Communities living by the ocean may soon be able to take advantage of the water supply near them. Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign developed a new electrode for battery-based water desalination, which may make water desalination more efficient and viable for coastal communities. "The situation is serious, and it will take global cooperation to tackle climate change and make a meaningful difference for the communities around the world most vulnerable from the effects of climate change," said Dr. Jeremy Ely, senior lecturer at the University of Sheffield's School of Geography and Planning, per Cosmos magazine. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
AFP
23-05-2025
- Science
- AFP
Sea ice data does not disprove warming in Antarctica
"We are constantly being lied too (sic)," says a May 6, 2025 post on Threads. The post shares an image juxtaposing two charts measuring sea ice extent. One is from December 24, 1979, while the other from December 24, 2024. "Antarctic sea ice extent is 17% higher today than it was in 1979," text under the charts reads. Image A screenshot of a Threads post taken on May 20, 2025 Similar claims also appeared on other platforms, including Instagram and X. Narratives seeking to deny the impact of climate change on the Arctic and Antarctic -- the polar regions surrounding the North and South poles -- often rely on sea ice data to make misleading claims. In this case, the charts shared online come from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). AFP retrieved exact matches for them from the NSIDC online archives (here and here). But their side-by-side comparison amounts to "a classic case of cherry picking," said Walt Meier, senior research scientist at the NSIDC. "Looking at single days from two years does not give useful information about trends or the response of sea ice to warming," Meier said May 14. Cherry-picked data The NSIDC says on its website that sea ice data has been repeatedly misused to spread myths about global warming (archived here). Generally, scientists look at decade-long trends for "sea ice extent," a term referring to the total area of the ocean where at least 15 percent of the surface is frozen. Image An image taken from the National Snow and Ice Data Center's (NSIDC) archives shows sea ice extent in Antarctica on December 24, 1979 (National Snow and Ice Data Center) The measurements taken on December 24, 1979 and December 24, 2024 do show a difference in sea ice cover, the agency said, but it is about a 12 percent increase -- not 17 percent. Comparing most other dates would have left a different impression. "From 1 January through 13 December, the 2024 extent was below 1979 levels, by over 1 million square kilometers at times," Meier said, noting that this equates to an area roughly the size of Egypt. "Only during 14-31 December were 2024 extents higher than 1979," he added. Antarctica's summer months, from December to February, naturally show greater shifts of sea ice extent because of warmer temperatures and longer hours of sunlight. That means a small change in the timing of the retreat of ice -- and when exactly melt season starts -- can quickly and greatly shift its extent in one December relative to another, Meier explained. Across the whole of 2024, warming was observed and sea ice extent measured lower than the 1979 annual average by about 11 percent, according to NSIDC data. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Antarctic sea ice extent hit its second lowest annual minimum in 2024 since monitoring started in 1979, with the year 2025 likely to tie such a record (archived here and here). Potential 'regime shift' Dramatic shifts in climate have already occurred in the Antarctic Peninsula, the part of Antarctica farthest from the South Pole. The peninsula is warming at a rate five times faster than the global average -- and faster than anywhere else within the Southern Hemisphere (archived here). Yet continent-wide patterns of temperature change remain uncertain, scientists say. Unlike the Arctic, where sea ice extent has been consistently decreasing across all areas and seasons since records started, Antarctica's sea ice lacks a defined long-term decline (archived here). "The Antarctic sea ice is thin and open to the ocean, so it has much more variability and thus the global warming signal is not as evident," Meier said. The last decade has shown more extreme fluctuations, which scientists say could indicate a "regime shift" into a new low-extent state, possibly due to warmer oceans (archived here and here). Both polar oceans are warming, with the "Southern Ocean being disproportionately and increasingly important in global ocean heat increase," according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the leading international consortium of climate scientists (archived here). Samantha Burgess of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, which runs the Copernicus climate monitor, added in a February 2025 report: "One of the consequences of a warmer world is melting sea ice, and the record or near-record low sea ice cover at both poles has pushed global sea ice cover to an all-time minimum." When highly reflective snow and ice give way to dark blue ocean, the sun radiation that once used to bounce back into space is instead absorbed by water, accelerating the pace of global warming in a feedback loop. Decreased ice cover also has serious and rapid impacts on ecosystems, such as the survival of penguins and their habitats (archived here). AFP has debunked other claims about the effects of global warming at the Poles, including here.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Earth's 'catastrophic' ice melt problem is worse than previously thought, study says
Huge expanses of ice are melting alarmingly fast, raising new concerns about "catastrophic consequences for humanity," a study published May 20 says. The study focuses on two masses of ice currently sitting on land: The Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. As temperatures rise, that ice is melting, flowing into the ocean and making sea levels rise. While change in sea level rise is often measured in centimeters or inches, the ice melt potential of these sheets could raise sea levels dozens of feet. It's happening even faster than expected, authors warn in the study published in the journal Communications Earth and Environment. 'Recent satellite-based observations of ice sheet mass loss have been a huge wake-up call for the whole scientific and policy community working on sea-level rise and its impacts," said study co-author Jonathan Bamber, of the University of Bristol in the UK. An ice sheet is a mass of glacial land ice extending more than 20,000 square miles. Ice sheets once covered much of the Northern Hemisphere during the ice age. Now, Earth has just two ice sheets: one covers most of Greenland, the largest island in the world, and the other spans across the Antarctic continent, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Together, the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets contain more than 99% of the land ice and over 68% of the fresh water on Earth. Ice loss in Greenland and Antarctica is already influencing ocean waters and causing sea levels around the globe to rise, the NSIDC said. If global greenhouse gas emissions continue at their current rate, Earth's ice sheets are vulnerable to even more massive rapid ice loss that could substantially raise sea levels. According to the new study, the mass of ice lost from these ice sheets has quadrupled since the 1990s and they are currently losing around 370 billion metric tons of ice per year. Even if the Earth returns to its preindustrial temperature, it will still take hundreds to perhaps thousands of years for the ice sheets to recover. If too much ice is lost, parts of these ice sheets may not recover until the Earth enters the next ice age, the study suggests. Study co-author Rob DeConto, from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said, "In other words, land lost to sea level rise from melting ice sheets will be lost for a very, very long time. That's why it is so critical to limit warming in the first place.' The research suggests global leaders should aim for 1 degree C of warming (as compared to the Earth's temperature over a century ago) to avoid significant losses from the ice sheets and prevent a further acceleration in sea-level rise. That's a lofty goal, considering the 1.5 degree C threshold has long been discussed as a difficult but achievable goal. (Hope has been fleeting about that goal as last year crossed that threshold). 'There is a growing body of evidence that 1.5 degrees is too high for the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica," study lead author Chris Stokes, from the Department of Geography at Durham University in the UK, said in a statement. "We've known for a long time that some sea-level rise is inevitable over the next few decades to centuries, but recent observations of ice sheet loss are alarming, even under current climate conditions." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Greenland and Antarctic ice sheet melt worse than previously feared
USA Today
21-05-2025
- Science
- USA Today
Earth's 'catastrophic' ice melt problem is worse than previously thought, study says
Earth's 'catastrophic' ice melt problem is worse than previously thought, study says The world's two gigantic ice sheets are in greater peril from global warming than previously thought, a study published May 20 says. Show Caption Hide Caption How President Trump impacted climate change policy so far Since taking office, President Trump has abandoned efforts to reduce global warming. It could 'take a generation or more to repair the damage." Huge expanses of ice are melting alarmingly fast, raising new concerns about "catastrophic consequences for humanity," a study published May 20 says. The study focuses on two masses of ice currently sitting on land: The Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. As temperatures rise, that ice is melting, flowing into the ocean and making sea levels rise. While change in sea level rise is often measured in centimeters or inches, the ice melt potential of these sheets could raise sea levels dozens of feet. It's happening even faster than expected, authors warn in the study published in the journal Communications Earth and Environment. 'Recent satellite-based observations of ice sheet mass loss have been a huge wake-up call for the whole scientific and policy community working on sea-level rise and its impacts," said study co-author Jonathan Bamber, of the University of Bristol in the UK. What is an ice sheet? An ice sheet is a mass of glacial land ice extending more than 20,000 square miles. Ice sheets once covered much of the Northern Hemisphere during the ice age. Now, Earth has just two ice sheets: one covers most of Greenland, the largest island in the world, and the other spans across the Antarctic continent, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Together, the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets contain more than 99% of the land ice and over 68% of the fresh water on Earth. Sea levels are rising Ice loss in Greenland and Antarctica is already influencing ocean waters and causing sea levels around the globe to rise, the NSIDC said. If global greenhouse gas emissions continue at their current rate, Earth's ice sheets are vulnerable to even more massive rapid ice loss that could substantially raise sea levels. According to the new study, the mass of ice lost from these ice sheets has quadrupled since the 1990s and they are currently losing around 370 billion metric tons of ice per year. Recovery could take thousands of years Even if the Earth returns to its preindustrial temperature, it will still take hundreds to perhaps thousands of years for the ice sheets to recover. If too much ice is lost, parts of these ice sheets may not recover until the Earth enters the next ice age, the study suggests. Study co-author Rob DeConto, from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said, "In other words, land lost to sea level rise from melting ice sheets will be lost for a very, very long time. That's why it is so critical to limit warming in the first place.' How hot is too hot? The research suggests global leaders should aim for 1 degree C of warming (as compared to the Earth's temperature over a century ago) to avoid significant losses from the ice sheets and prevent a further acceleration in sea-level rise. That's a lofty goal, considering the 1.5 degree C threshold has long been discussed as a difficult but achievable goal. (Hope has been fleeting about that goal as last year crossed that threshold). 'There is a growing body of evidence that 1.5 degrees is too high for the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica," study lead author Chris Stokes, from the Department of Geography at Durham University in the UK, said in a statement. "We've known for a long time that some sea-level rise is inevitable over the next few decades to centuries, but recent observations of ice sheet loss are alarming, even under current climate conditions."
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Trump administration stopping NOAA data service used to monitor sea ice off Alaska
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways A walrus mother and calf rest on an ice floe in Alaska's Chukchi Sea in 2010. Other resting walruses are in the background. Sea ice extent is tracked by the National Snow and Ice Data Center, a Colorado-based facility that uses data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (Photo by Sarah Sonsthagen/U.S. Geological Survey) The Trump administration is ending National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration services that monitor Arctic sea ice and snow cover, leading climate scientists said on Tuesday. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information has decommissioned its snow and ice data products as of Monday, the National Snow and Ice Data Center announced. The data collected by that NOAA office is critical to the daily updates provided by the Colorado-based center, which tracks one of the most obvious effects of climate change: the long-term loss of Arctic sea ice. It is also critical to the regular sea ice reports produced by Rick Thoman at the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy, as well as to research done by his UAF colleagues. Thoman said he learned about the decision Tuesday morning. 'I was completely blindsided,' he said. Other Arctic-related information that the NSIDC said will be limited by NOAA's discontinuation of services include gridded monthly analyses of sea ice extent and concentration, a dataset that goes back to 1850; photographic records of glaciers and the World Glacier Inventory, which monitors over 130,000 glaciers worldwide; and a dataset tracking snowpack properties. The NSIDC, in its notice, said the loss of NOAA data means that regular reports published by the center will be limited to 'basic' levels, 'meaning they will remain accessible but may not be actively maintained, updated, or fully supported.' Arctic sea ice extent on Sept. 11, 2024, illustrated by NASA Earth Observatory using information from the National Snow and Ice Data Center. The image shows the annual minimum extent for 2024. (Image by Lauren Dauphin/NASA Earth Observatory) For Thoman, who produces regular reports about ice conditions in the Bering, Chukchi and Beaufort seas off Alaska that put current conditions in historic context, the gap in information is a big loss. The National Weather Service's Alaska Sea Ice Program remains in place – for now – so a person in Utqiagvik, for example, will be able to know in real time how far the ice edge is from shore, Thoman said. But 'how is this comparing to last year or 10 years ago, 20 years ago? That will be much more difficult,' he said. Unless the dataset is restored or provided by other sources, that trend analysis may be lost for good, he said. Gaps in such information pose practical problems in Alaska for activities like infrastructure planning, Thoman said. 'You're doing the Port of Nome construction, you want to know that kind of stuff, right?' he said. There are some other sources of ice and snow data available to the NSIDC and to Thoman and other scientists at UAF. The European Union's Copernicus program monitors sea ice, as does the Japan Space Agency, also known as JAXA. But those data collection programs do not provide the same kind of regional information that the NSIDC has been able to provide through the NOAA services, Thoman said. He sees a common thread in the Arctic data services that NOAA is discontinuing. 'They're all things that are useful for illustrating change,' he said. 'I mean, why on earth would you take away a glacier photo collection?' NOAA officials did not respond Tuesday to requests for comments. Arctic sea ice has diminished in extent and thickness over the half century in which satellite observations have been made. Annual summer melt has become more extensive, leaving far wider areas of the Arctic Ocean open. The annual minimums have declined by about 12.4% per decade since the 1980s, according to the NSIDC. The dark surfaces of open water exposed by ice melt absorb more solar heat than white, ice-covered surfaces do, so loss of sea ice is part of a self-reinforcing warming loop called Arctic Amplification. Historical ice trends in August in the Beaufort Sea are shown in this graph compiled by Rick Thoman of the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy. It is an example of the illustrations that Thoman creates using information from the National Snow and Ice Data Center, which in turn has relied on data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (Graph from Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy/University of Alaska Fairbanks) Last September's annual minimum extent was the seventh lowest in the 47-year satellite record, according to the NSIDC. Even winter sea ice has been declining. This year's maximum extent at the end of the freeze season in March was the lowest in the satellite record, according to the NSIDC. What ice exists now in the Arctic Ocean is younger and thinner than sea ice was in the past. In the 1980s, about a third of the sea ice at the peak of the freeze season was over four years old, and a third was thinner, single-year ice, according to government scientists. But in recent years, less than 5% of peak winter sea ice has been over four years old, and two-thirds of that winter ice has been thinner single-year ice, according to the center. Up to now, NOAA has been deeply involved in tracking climate change in the Arctic. It has been issuing an annual Arctic Report Card since 2006, for example. Last year's report card provided information about how the tundra regions of the Arctic have become net carbon emitters, a change from their past status as carbon sinks. But NOAA's climate change research is a specific target for elimination in Project 2025, a governing plan published by the conservative Heritage Foundation prior to last year's election. Seen as a blueprint for a second Trump administration, the document refers to NOAA and several of its agencies, including he National Weather Service and National Marine Fisheries Service, as 'a colossal operation that has become one of the main drivers of the climate change alarm industry' that is 'harmful to future U.S. prosperity.' Several Project 2025 authors are now members of the Trump administration, and the administration has already fired large numbers of NOAA employees and slashed the agency's funding. The Arctic data services are not alone in being discontinued by NOAA. NOAA's National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service has announced plans to end data services about ocean currents, underwater terrain, the U.S. hot springs inventory and earthquakes, among other subjects. One of the services on the chopping block is NOAA's Marine Environmental Buoy Database, scheduled to be discontinued at the end of the month. The buoys collect and transmit data on weather and ocean conditions, and they are used to increase marine safety. Last month, the Alaska state Senate passed a resolution asking NOAA to not only maintain the buoy system it has in marine waters off the state's coast but to improve the system by repairing buoys that are currently out of service. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
