During a time of global environmental change, the student and faculty scientists at CU’s National Snow and Ice Data Center are busy with scientific data management and research dealing with Arctic Sea ice decline.
According to the NSIDC, rising global temperatures have caused the ice to melt, and this year’s satellite data from NASA show the ice extent is lower than it was in 2007, the year it shattered all records for low ice extent in September, at the same time.
Mark Serreze, NSIDC director and scientist, defined extent as how many square miles of the ocean surface are covered with ice, which shows how healthy the ice cover is. The minimum extent occurs at the end of the melt season in September, and the maximum extent occurs in March after the ice grows during the winter.
(Courtesy of Liz Murphy Global Media via flickr.com)
“We’ve seen this very strong decline in the extent of Arctic sea ice,” Serreze said. “We’re seeing the sea ice responding to the overall warming of the planet.”
The NSIDC have analyzed satellite data streams from NASA since 1979, and this data has shown an average 10 percent decline of Arctic sea ice extent per decade, Walt Meier, NSIDC scientist, said.
“This year was the second lowest minimum extent,” Meier said. “The last five years have been the five lowest [since 1979].”
Researchers at NSIDC have found that carbon is trapped in the permafrost, which is any soil or rock material that has remained below the freezing point of water for two or more years in the Arctic. Meier said when the sea ice melts, the carbon in the permafrost is released into the air, increasing the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
“There’s a lot of carbon locked up in the permafrost,” he said. “With as much carbon in the permafrost, if it were to all come out, it would double the current concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.”
Allison Hurley, a 24-year-old geology graduate student, said the greenhouse gases absorb and trap heat, which cause positive feedback and increases the overall temperature of the air.
“The atmosphere circulates and acts as a transport system,” Hurley said. “Greenhouse gases can be transported to different parts of the globe.”
According to the NSIDC website, http://nsidc.org/index.html, changes in the sea ice extent can have global impacts.
“The bright white sea ice reflects sunlight and heat back into space, so that the Arctic region remains cooler than it otherwise would,” according to the NSIDC website. “The cold temperatures in the Arctic in turn act as a sort of air conditioner for the rest of the world.”
When the nature of the “air conditioner” changes, weather patterns, such as precipitation and temperature, in the middle latitudes may also be affected, Serreze said. Scientists cannot yet say what specific weather changes might occur, but there is definitely potential evidence, Meier said.
“Strong storms and cold temperatures could be linked to the Arctic,” Meier said. “Vast changes going on in the Arctic allows more heat to move in the Arctic and more cold air to move down.”
Meier said the changes occurring with the Arctic sea ice extent not only affect the region but the world, as well.
“It’s not Las Vegas,” Meier said. “What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Catarina Massa Catarina.massa@colorado.edu.
