News Briefing, 2 August 2024 East Antarctica is currently experiencing a heatwave in the middle of winter of up to 28°C above normal. This is the second major heat wave to afflict the region in the past two years, and is expected to persist for another 10 days. Temperatures remain at around -20°C, driven by […]
In this presentation given during an “Arctic 21” science-policy briefing earlier this year, Dr. Jonathan Wille decodes the record-busting March 2022 East Antarctica heat wave, including its impact on the Antarctic ice sheet. This extreme heat event saw numerous March temperature records broken, with unprecedented coastal rain and melting, and temperatures 30°–40°C above average in […]
Geophysical Research Letters, 17 July 2024 Arctic sea ice has been called the “Earth’s refrigerator,” cooling the planet by reflecting the sun’s rays. Its area (or extent) has been decreasing for several decades, but the degree to which this has impacted sea ice’s cooling effect has been debated, for example because some models have shown […]
The Cryosphere, 22 May 2024 Glacier volume has decreased by 8% across the Andes since 2010, with snow and ice melt producing up to 40% more runoff in the tropical and dry regions fed by the Central Andes compared to the prior decade. This study incorporates local climate data from diverse regions to more accurately […]
Dr. Bethan Davies is a Senior Lecturer in Physical Geography at Newcastle University in the UK, and on July 11 detailed the results of two recent papers on the long-term pattern of glacier retreat in the Western Hemisphere, specifically Alaska and the Andes. Dr. Davies specializes in reconstructing glacier dynamics over multiple timescales, from both […]
Nature Communications, 2 July 2024 The massive Juneau Icefield in Alaska contains more than one thousand glaciers and has rapidly melted over the past decade, shrinking five times faster between 2010-2020 compared to the 1980s. During this period, the volume of glacier ice loss doubled. Alaska’s icefields are particularly vulnerable to climate warming because these […]
Geophysical Research Letters, 30 June 2024 Tropical glaciers in the Andes are now losing ice up to 10 times faster than their long-term average, according to a new study. Authors mapped changes in more than 5500 glaciers across the Andes since the Little Ice Age (1,400 to 1,850 CE) in order to place today’s losses […]
From the high latitudes to mountain regions, the world’s glaciers are responding faster than expected to fossil fuel emissions. This event shared the latest glacier models and described which regions have the most glacier ice that would be saved if emissions are kept within 1.5°C. Dr. Mohan Chand from Tribhuvan University moderated this session. Dr. […]
Nature Geoscience, 25 June 2024 Modelers have long theorized about processes that might account for the unusually rapid sea-level rise from ice sheets in Earth’s distant past, such as marine ice cliff instability (MICI). This new study finds that runaway intrusion of warm seawater under the Antarctic ice sheet may be just such a process, […]
News Briefing, 25 June 2024 Research led by the Union of Concerned Scientists concludes that nearly three million people live in communities with critical infrastructure at risk of monthly flooding by 2050, including hundreds of schools, hospitals, and government buildings. States such as Louisiana, New Jersey, Florida, Maryland, and California contain the largest amount of […]
46th ATCM and 26th CEP in Kochi, Kerala, India | 20-30 May 2024 For the first time, the Antarctic Treaty meetings worked on a tourism framework, in response to growing concerns about its rapid growth and environmental impacts. As one of the main outcomes this year, parties adopted the decision to develop the very first […]
Mountain areas are key for climate adaptation efforts due to their transboundary and global importance (natural hazards, water towers, global biodiversity hotspots), high vulnerability to climate change, and tendency to host marginalized and isolated communities. This panel focused on the need for mountain-based adaptation funding. Speakers outlined pathways for leveraging finance further, such as finding […]
The Cryosphere, 3 June 2024 A new model incorporating the latest ice-ocean interactions projects that future stability of West Antarctica’s massive Thwaites Glacier relies on small “pinning points” where it rests on the bedrock. The speed at which increasingly warm ocean waters erode these pinning points will play an important role in determining the future […]
Communications Earth & Environment, 13 June 2024 The Hudson Bay polar bear population, comprising three of the world’s 19 remaining groups (about 4000 individuals), will go locally extinct in the next few decades if today’s emissions continue, a study this week found. This is due to projected loss not only of sea ice extent, but […]
The Arctic is currently warming up to four times faster than the rest of the planet. Rapidly disappearing Arctic sea ice impacts weather systems across America, Europe and Asia, generating frequent and more powerful extreme events than ever observed before. Critical thresholds are likely to be passed if the global warming exceeds 1.5C, impacting the […]