. 24/7 Space News .
ICE WORLD
Record low Antarctic sea ice extent could signal shift
By Marlowe HOOD
Paris (AFP) April 19, 2022

Sea ice around Antarctica shrank to the smallest extent on record in February, five years after the previous record low, researchers said Tuesday, suggesting Earth's frozen continent may be less impervious to climate change than thought.

In late February, the ocean area covered by ice slipped below the symbolic barrier of two million square kilometres (around 772,000 square miles) for the first time since satellite records began in 1978, according to a study in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences.

Researchers found that the key driver of ice loss was change in temperature, though shifts in ice mass also played a lesser role.

Both the North and South pole regions have warmed by roughly three degrees Celsius compared to late 19th-century levels, three times the global average.

Antarctica encountered its first recorded heatwave in 2020, with an unprecedented 9.2C above the mean maximum, and in March a research centre in eastern Antarctica saw temperatures soar 30 degrees above normal.

But extreme aberrations of this kind are recent.

Unlike sea ice in the Arctic, which has diminished by three percent a year since the late 1970s, sea ice in Antarctica expanded over the same period by one percent per decade, albeit with large annual variations.

Ice cover during this year's austral summer shrank most around West Antarctica, which has been more vulnerable to global warming than the far larger East Antarctica.

- Sea-ice budget -

Melting sea ice has no discernable impact on sea levels because the ice is already in ocean water.

But diminished ice cover is nonetheless a major concern because it helps accelerate global warming, explained co-author Qinghua Yang, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou.

When white sea ice -- which bounces the Sun's energy back into space -- is replaced by dark, unfrozen sea, "there is less reflection of heat and more absorption," he said in a statement.

"This in turn melts more sea ice, producing more absorption of heat, in a vicious circle."

Pristine snow and ice reflect more than 80 percent of the Sun's energy back into space whereas open ocean absorb the same percentage.

Startlingly, the record low 1.9 million square kilometres on February 25 was 30 percent below the 1981-2010 average. The previous record was just over two million square kilometres in 2017.

Maximum sea ice extent in Antarctica has averaged about 18 million square kilometres in recent years.

To analyse the causes of this year's record ice loss, researchers examined Antarctica's "sea-ice budget" -- ice added and ice lost, year by year -- as well as daily sea-ice drift, or movement.

"In summer, thermodynamic" -- or temperature-related -- "processes dominate the sea melting through poleward heat transport," the study concluded.

The record minimum sea ice extent in the Arctic -- 3.4 million square kilometres -- occurred in 2012, with the 2nd and 3rd lowest ice-covered areas in 2020 and 2019, respectively. Maximum sea ice extent has averaged about 15 million square kilometres.

Ice sheets atop West Antarctica hold the equivalent of six metres of sea level rise, where as East Antarctica's massive glaciers would raise global oceans by more than 50 metres.


Related Links
Beyond the Ice Age


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


ICE WORLD
Solar energy explains fast yearly retreat of Antarctica's sea ice
Seattle WA (SPX) Mar 29, 2022
In the Southern Hemisphere, the ice cover around Antarctica gradually expands from March to October each year. During this time the total ice area increases by 6 times to become larger than Russia. The sea ice then retreats at a faster pace, most dramatically around December, when Antarctica experiences constant daylight. New research led by the University of Washington explains why the ice retreats so quickly: Unlike other aspects of its behavior, Antarctic sea ice is just following simple rules of phy ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

ICE WORLD
Venice readies day-trip booking system to ease crowds

Safe ISS operation should remain priority, Space Foundation says

NASA sets coverage for Russian spacewalks

Space Perspective unveils luxurious balloon-launched spaceflight experience

ICE WORLD
Rocket Lab Breaks Ground on Neutron Production Complex in Wallops, Virginia

Rocket Lab secures multi-launch contract with HawkEye 360

China launches Zhongxing-6D satellite

AFRL completes series of 1 newton ascent monopropellant thruster testing

ICE WORLD
Sols 3444-3445: The curious case of cross-cutting ridges

Digging into drill data takes perseverance

NASA and UAE to share Mars mission datasets

Sols 3442-3443: Deoch-an-Doris

ICE WORLD
Three Chinese astronauts return to Earth after six months in space

China's 'space dream': A Long March to the Moon and beyond

Xi calls on Wenchang to build world-class spaceport

Shenzhou 13 astronauts ready to return

ICE WORLD
European Space Agency stops cooperation with Russian lunar missions

Intelsat supports programmers with cloud connect media

Race is on for China's first domestic satellite listed firm

US, Russia Should Cooperate on Leveraging Private Investment for Space Programs - Expert

ICE WORLD
Air lasing: A new tool for atmospheric detection

Lasers trigger magnetism in atomically thin quantum materials

Stanford engineers develop new kind of 3D printing

Embracing ancient materials and 21st-century challenges

ICE WORLD
Diverse life forms may have evolved earlier than previously thought

A Beacon in the Galaxy: Updated Arecibo Message for Potential FAST and SETI Projects

Hubble probes extreme weather on ultra-hot Jovian exoplanets

Cosmic SETI ready to stream data for technosignature research from Jansky VLA

ICE WORLD
Four billion-year-old relic from early solar system heading our way

ESO telescope captures surprising changes in Neptune's temperatures

17-year Neptune study reveals surprising temperature changes

A closer look at Jupiter's origin story









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.