Arctic Ice Stabilizes in Short Term

Polar bear on sea ice Arctic

Polar bear on sea ice in the Arctic. Nasa photo.

The Arctic summer of 2013 was a cool one. So much so that the trend of decreasing sea ice has regained it’s recent losses by at least one third over the last few years. Because of the cool summer that year, more multi – year ice was left at the end of the summer.

Despite the encouraging news, scientists cautiously warn the news is an anomaly and climate change related to warming is still very real.

“It would suggest that sea is more resilient perhaps if you get one year of cooler temperature. We’ve almost wound the clock back a few years on this gradual decline that’s been happening over decades,” lead author Rachel Tilling told BBC News. “The long-term trend of the ice volume is downwards and the long-term trend of the temperatures in the Arctic is upwards and this finding doesn’t give us any reason to disbelieve that. As far as we can tell, it’s just one anomalous year.”

President Obama will visit Anchorage, Alaska on August 31 to address the state departments GLACIER conference. Foreign ministers from Arctic nations as well as non – Arctic states will attend as well as scientists, policy makers and stakeholders from the Arctic and Alaska will also attend.

The conference goal is to increase global awareness of how Arctic climate change is a harbinger for warming affects in the rest of the world.

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