Alex Kirby – Arctic Tipping Points Put Earth at Risk

LONDON—If the world fails to slow the pace of climate change very soon by cutting emissions of the greenhouse gases that are heating the planet, Arctic tipping points threaten to overwhelm the region, new research reveals. Not only that—the authors of the Arctic Resilience Report say the changes that are liable to affect the high northern latitudes could also trigger …

Chris Mooney and Jason Samenow – The North Pole is an insane 36 degrees warmer than normal as winter descends

This story has been updated. Political people in the United States are watching the chaos in Washington in the moment. But some people in the science community are watching the chaos somewhere else — the Arctic. It’s polar night there now — the sun isn’t rising in much of the Arctic. That’s when the Arctic is supposed to get super-cold, …

Vancouver Considers Abandoning Parts of the Coast Because of Climate Change

Vancouver prides itself on being a coastal city, nestled between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific. Like every other part of the world, it’s under threat from climate change, as warming temperatures cause sea levels to creep ever-higher. The city is looking at many options to hold back the rising water—and for the first time, retreat from the coast is …

Tim Radford – Arctic Ocean could be ice-free before mid-century

LONDON, 5 November, 2016 – Two scientists have worked out what it would take to melt all the ice in the Arctic Ocean. If their sums are right, then by the time human beings have burned enough fossil fuels to add 1,000 billion tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, the Arctic Ocean will be free of ice in September …

Tim Radford – Arctic Warming Gives U.S. and Europe the Chills

LONDON—Warming in the Arctic—one of the fastest-warming regions on the planet—could be heightening the chances of extreme winters in Europe and the US. As the Arctic warms, the stratospheric jet stream that brings occasionally catastrophic ice storms and record snow falls to the eastern United States could also be on the move, according to new research in the journal Nature …

Emergency Power: The Top Portable Solar Panel Chargers for Disasters

From seasonal storms and natural disasters to hacking attacks and terrorism, we face more threats on our power grid than ever before. With much of our electrical infrastructure still relying on antiquated equipment and technologies, our power grid has become extremely vulnerable to disruption. Luckily, advances in solar technology have made it possible for everyone to at least have a …

Atlantic Ocean’s slowdown tied to changes in the Southern Hemisphere

The ocean circulation that is responsible for England’s mild climate appears to be slowing down. The shift is not sudden or dramatic, as in the 2004 sci-fi movie “The Day After Tomorrow,” but it is a real effect that has consequences for the climates of eastern North America and Western Europe. Also unlike in that movie, and in theories of …

PETER WADHAMS – As Arctic Ocean Ice Disappears, The Global Climate Impacts Intensify

THE NEWS LAST WEEK THAT SUMMER ICE COVERING THE ARCTIC OCEAN WAS TIED FOR THE SECOND-LOWEST EXTENT ON RECORD IS A SOBERING REMINDER THAT THE PLANET IS SWIFTLY HEADING TOWARD A LARGELY ICE-FREE ARCTIC IN THE WARMER MONTHS, POSSIBLY AS EARLY AS 2020. After that, we can expect the ice-free period in the Arctic basin to expand to three to four months a …

ROBERT HUNZIKER – Loss of Planet Reflectivity an Impending Catastrophe

The planet’s air conditioning system is on the blink, working intermittently, losing its glinting, lustrous white reflectiveness, as it turns deep blue, absorbing 90% of sunlight rather than reflecting it back into outer space. The repercussions of Arctic sea ice loss are immense. “Our planet has actually changed colour,” Peter Wadhams, A Farewell to Ice (Allen Lane an imprint of …