Global Warming and Ice Dynamics

Ice in the Far South

• 2023: global warming crossed the +1.5 degrees Celsius threshold set in 2015
• Positive feedbacks accelerating warming
• Cooling periods feature glacial advance and decreased solar radiation, increasing albedo (reflectivity) and trapping more solar energy.
• Increased snow and ice lead to more reflected solar energy.
• Expanding ice and permafrost store more methane and carbon dioxide.
• Cooling oceans absorb more dissolved carbon dioxide, weakening the greenhouse effect.
• Warming periods (interglacials) feature increased solar radiation, less snow and ice, decreasing albedo, and releasing stored methane and carbon dioxide.
• Permafrost thawing releases greenhouse gasses, amplifying the effect.
• Increased photosynthesis further strengthens the carbon cycle.
• Warming oceans release dissolved carbon dioxide.
• Antarctica and Arctic ice sheets/shelves are in trouble, with rapid melting since the 1990s.
• Cryosphere: areas with permanent ice and snow, mostly near the poles. Greenland is losing ice faster than Antarctica.
• Ice sheets sit on land; Ice shelves sit on the sea.
• Ice shelves break off and melt, increasing instability.

Ice in the Far North

• West Antarctica experiences significant warming and major ice shelf breakup.
• Antarctica's ice sheet (a huge mass of ice over land) melts and dumps billions of tonnes of ice into the ocean, accelerating global sea-level rise.
• Antarctic sea ice decline is rapid, with biological changes too.

Loss in Arctic

• Lower albedo in the Arctic results in more heat absorption because less is reflected.
• More albedo means the area is more shiny and reflective.
• Amplified Greenhouse effect is a result of the lower albedo.

Ice Shelves and Sheets

• Ice shelf melting results in more tourism, which increases the carbon footprint, further accelerating ice loss.
• The North Pole area is warming 4 times faster than the global average.
• Sea ice decline is happening faster than projected, and the thickness of ice has decreased.

Permafrost

• Permanently frozen layer of soil, gravel and sand bound by ice.
• Contains significantly more carbon than the atmosphere (about ~1500 BILLION tons).
• Thawing releases more carbon dioxide and methane, potent greenhouse gases locked in from ancient biomass.
• The permafrost line has retreated roughly ~130 km in the past 50 years.
• Methane hydrates (enclosed methane) are stored in large quantities beneath the permafrost.
• Warming oceans and land threaten the stability of methane releases.

Warming of Oceans

• Warming oceans, driven by climate change, result in sea level rise.
• Ice sheets and shelves are crucial for sea level rise.
• Melting ice adds freshwater to oceans, affecting thermohaline circulation (global ocean currents), potentially disrupting climate patterns.
• Freshwater influx from Greenland's ice into the North Atlantic disrupts the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation.

Melting of Ice

• Melting of ice has implications for biological health of Arctic and Antarctic waters.
• Melting ice negatively impacts global climate and sea levels.
• The Arctic, Iceland and Svalbard have ice decline.
• Another aspect is the thawing of permafrost releasing CO2 and Methane.

Tipping Points

• When average temperatures become too warm to stop permafrost thawing and large-scale releases of GHG.

Impacts of Melting

• Increased risk of fires due to deforestation, desertification, and expanding fire seasons.
• Declining forests
• Declining reservoirs
• Coral reefs are dying off
• Loss of coral reefs diminishes marine biodiversity reducing the oceans ability to absorb CO2.

Biodiversity

• Loss of species habitats and food supplies, causing stress for wildlife
• The world's biodiversity is in danger.

Climate Change Feedbacks

• Climate change creates feedback loops, with one change triggering a chain reaction. For example, arctic ice melt reducing albedo, leading to further warming and more ice melt.
• Feedbacks make it harder to predict future climate scenarios due to the complexity of these changes.

Uneven Vulnerability

• Regions and communities differ in their susceptibility to climate effects. These differences stem from geography, resources, and socioeconomic conditions.
• Wealthier nations have often resisted accountability for emissions and funding for the damage, with insufficient commitments to lower-income countries.

Climate Refugees

• Climate change displaces people due to environmental stresses like sea-level rise and events such as extreme weather, with significant challenges stemming from a lack of formal legal recognition for these refugees.

Inequality

• Climate Justice emphasizes fair and equitable distribution of burdens and benefits of climate action.
• High-emission countries bear the primary responsibility due to historical contributions, particularly since industrialization.
• Poorer nations are frequently the most impacted despite making minimal contributions to global warming.

Climate Impacts

• Rising heat waves and drought affect agriculture
• Melting glaciers reduce seasonal water supply, impacting cities and communities
• Low-lying coastal areas and small islands at high risk of displacement due to sea level rise.
• Loss of biodiversity, and mass extinction.
• Increasing frequency of extreme weather and wildfires.

Explore the intricate relationship between ice dynamics and global warming in this quiz. Learn how factors like albedo, permafrost, and greenhouse gases influence climate change, particularly in polar regions. Discover the implications of both cooling and warming periods on our planet's cryosphere.