The Arctic region is warming up largely due to changes in albedo- the loss of sunlight-reflecting ice and snow, replaced by sunlight-absorbing ocean and soil, which is resulting in heat spirals. “When 100,000-year-old carbon is released back to the atmosphere, that’s the stuff of true positive feedback. There were no injuries reported, and the fire’s cause was unknown Wednesday. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. NATO partners agree to mutual air defense systems. On Aug. 15, the ship embarked 11 scientists at Seward, Alaska, to conduct since-cancelled Arctic Ocean science operations. GFAS estimated July total CO2 emission (2004/2005), & last month’s 50 megatonnes … and still increasing,” he tweeted.

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This year’s drop is also far from a one-off—the 14 years with the lowest sea-ice area have all occurred in the last 14 years. Create a commenting name to join the debate, There are no Independent Premium comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts, There are no comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts. Almost half of all councils in England saw their Covid-19 infection rate DROP last week, data shows. North of the Arctic circle, the high temperatures are facilitating enormous wildfires which are wreaking ecological destruction on a colossal scale. It is being set ablaze. These smouldering fires not only are ignited much more easily than fiery flames by lightning strikes – they also can persist through cold and wet conditions much longer, largely because the peat holds vast stores of the combustible gas methane.
There are fears the pollution could spread to the Great Arctic State Nature Reserve, the largest nature reserve in both Russia and the Eurasian continent, and damage fish stocks for generations. China issues retaliation threat over $1.4B sales of U.S. arms to Taiwan. The cause of the fire is currently unknown, but a Coast Guard report on Tuesday said the incident occurred on Aug. 18, and the fire was extinguished after the burning motor was disconnected from the drivetrain.
The Arctic is on fire: Siberian heat wave alarms scientists. "I commend the crew of the Healy for their quick actions to safely combat the fire," said Vice Adm. Linda Fagan, USCG Pacific Area commander. Enormous forest fires in the Siberian tundra have threatened nearby settlements while chocking the region with smoke and ash (Credit: Getty Images), “Across the circumpolar Arctic, the take-home message is that there are distinct thresholds above which you start to see the tundra burning – it’s like a binary switch,” says Higuera. The medium-duty research icebreaker suffered an electrical fire last week disabling its starboard propulsion motor and shaft, the Coast Guard said in a statement, forcing the ship to cancel its Arctic mission and return to its But as fires in the boreal increase in size and severity in a warming climate, the likelihood of this “legacy carbon” being released to the atmosphere increases.

The … There were no injuries aboard the 21 year-old ship, but its diesel-powered starboard propulsion motor and shaft were damaged. Arnold Schwarzenegger recovering from heart surgery, SpaceX launches cluster of Starlink satellites, Folk singer Arlo Guthrie announces retirement from touring, Colorado wildfire kills couple in 80s who refused to leave home, U.S. reaches new one-day coronavirus case high of 83,000, President Trump, Joe Biden meet for final presidential debate. “In the boreal zone, we are already seeing a proliferation of deciduous forest across the landscape as coniferous forest fails to return post fire,” says Turetsky. “This casualty, however, means that the United States is limited in icebreaking capability until the Healy can be repaired, and it highlights the nation’s critical need for Polar Security Cutters.”. The number of areas near to and exceeding this tipping point are likely to increase as the climate continues to warm in the coming decades, says Higuera. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. “As the Arctic melts, the ocean will absorb more heat, and all of us will be more exposed to the devastating effects of climate breakdown.”. For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com, Like us on Facebook to see similar stories, Some doctors fighting the pandemic now have another thing to worry about, Fast-food giants like Chipotle and Dunkin' are doubling down on TikTok.