Comments on: NSIDC: Arctic shortcuts open up; decline pace steady http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/ The Latest on Climate Science, Solutions, and Politics Fri, 09 Jan 2009 07:00:22 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1 By: Ron Broberg http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18035 Ron Broberg Tue, 26 Aug 2008 17:48:37 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18035 One of the political angles of attack I use against deniers is the political and economic implications of the opening of the NW Passage and future Oil/NG resource exploitation. The Russians and Canadians would like nothing more than for us to believe that nothing is changing in the Arctic and that its business as usual. Meanwhile, a growing number of Navy and Coast Guard Admirals and defense think-tanks are coming to the realization that there is open water in the Arctic. The Coast Guard beefed up two Arctic coast stations this year and the Navy is telling us it takes 12 years from decision point to the commissioning of a new ship. Of course, half of the deniers now just say - well sure its changing. Change is natural. But it mutes the other half who don't believe that we're warming. One of the political angles of attack I use against deniers is the political and economic implications of the opening of the NW Passage and future Oil/NG resource exploitation. The Russians and Canadians would like nothing more than for us to believe that nothing is changing in the Arctic and that its business as usual. Meanwhile, a growing number of Navy and Coast Guard Admirals and defense think-tanks are coming to the realization that there is open water in the Arctic. The Coast Guard beefed up two Arctic coast stations this year and the Navy is telling us it takes 12 years from decision point to the commissioning of a new ship.

Of course, half of the deniers now just say - well sure its changing. Change is natural. But it mutes the other half who don’t believe that we’re warming.

]]> By: Jim O'Rourke http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18036 Jim O'Rourke Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:13:32 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18036 Joe: I thought I read something yesterday about a giant crack appearing unexpectedly on the northern Greenland glacier - any news on that? Joe: I thought I read something yesterday about a giant crack appearing unexpectedly on the northern Greenland glacier - any news on that?

]]> By: John Hollenberg http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18045 John Hollenberg Tue, 26 Aug 2008 23:10:28 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18045 The line has gone down sharply in just the last few days and is now very close to the 2007 line (although still slightly above it): http://nsidc.org/data/seaice_index/images/daily_images/N_timeseries.png The line has gone down sharply in just the last few days and is now very close to the 2007 line (although still slightly above it):

http://nsidc.org/ data/ seaice_index/ images/ daily_images/ N_timeseries.png

]]> By: jorleh http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18066 jorleh Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:52:32 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18066 No big noise from the deniers just now. Is this the end of those idiots? No big noise from the deniers just now. Is this the end of those idiots?

]]> By: Gareth http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18073 Gareth Wed, 27 Aug 2008 09:21:18 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18073 And just to <a href="http://hot-topic.co.nz/i-scare-myself/" rel="nofollow">spice things up</a> a little... more news on methane. And just to spice things up a little… more news on methane.

]]> By: Mauri Pelto http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18075 Mauri Pelto Wed, 27 Aug 2008 10:53:18 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18075 Jim: The Petermann Glacier which is the largest outlet glacier in northwest Greenland, has a huge floating tongue within its fjord. It just experienced a significant collapse (29 square km) of a portion of the tongue for the second time in this decade. The glacier has retreated very little in the 20th century. There is a large crack well back of the ice front indicating the retreat will continue. This is the same story we have seen on the Wilkins Ice Shelf, Larsen Ice Shelf and Jakobshavns and Helheim glaciers. That is long term thinning leads to a reduction in backpressure from the pinning points, in this case fjord walls, that leads to more calving, which leads to more acceleration as the thinner ice is less connected. The crack well back of the front indicates the preconditioning of this glacier to further retreat just as the fissures in Wilkins Ice Shelf did six months ago. This glacier thins from 600 m thick at the grounding line 80 km from the former ice front to less than 100 m at the ice front. Note the glacier in 2003 http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17754 adn 2008 http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17754 Jim: The Petermann Glacier which is the largest outlet glacier in northwest Greenland, has a huge floating tongue within its fjord. It just experienced a significant collapse (29 square km) of a portion of the tongue for the second time in this decade. The glacier has retreated very little in the 20th century. There is a large crack well back of the ice front indicating the retreat will continue. This is the same story we have seen on the Wilkins Ice Shelf, Larsen Ice Shelf and Jakobshavns and Helheim glaciers. That is long term thinning leads to a reduction in backpressure from the pinning points, in this case fjord walls, that leads to more calving, which leads to more acceleration as the thinner ice is less connected. The crack well back of the front indicates the preconditioning of this glacier to further retreat just as the fissures in Wilkins Ice Shelf did six months ago. This glacier thins from 600 m thick at the grounding line 80 km from the former ice front to less than 100 m at the ice front.
Note the glacier in 2003 http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/ Newsroom/ NewImages/ images.php3?img_id=17754
adn 2008 http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/ Newsroom/ NewImages/ images.php3?img_id=17754

]]> By: David B. Benson http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18115 David B. Benson Wed, 27 Aug 2008 22:22:59 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18115 Mauri Pelto --- Both your links are the same. :-( Mauri Pelto — Both your links are the same. :-(

]]> By: Richard Levangie http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18150 Richard Levangie Thu, 28 Aug 2008 15:35:36 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18150 Another recent study adds to the alarm we should all feel as the ice melts... http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iurNRV6EfFYyVJTs8qHrgjte_3cA Another recent study adds to the alarm we should all feel as the ice melts…

http://afp.google.com/ article/ ALeqM5iurNRV6EfFYyVJTs8qHrgjte_3cA

]]> By: paulm http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18186 paulm Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:48:54 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/2008/08/26/nsidc-arctic-shortcuts-open-up-decline-pace-steady/#comment-18186 there's that tippy feeling again... Arctic ice 'is at tipping point' http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7585645.stm there’s that tippy feeling again…

Arctic ice ‘is at tipping point’
http://news.bbc.co.uk/ 2/ hi/ science/ nature/ 7585645.stm

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