The extent of sea ice in Antarctica reached a new record low on 21st February 2023.
At the end of February 2023, the extent of Antarctic sea ice reached a new record low. Since the first measurements were carried out using satellite imaging 45 years ago, the area of the ocean covered by the ice sheet had never been so small.
The figures were published by the US-based National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC). This research institute had already announced some worrying news earlier in the month, revealing that Antarctic sea ice, even before the end of the southern hemisphere summer, saw greater melting than in 2021, which had itself been a record year.
The melting process continued over the following days and, on 21 February, the US agency spoke of an overall extent of 1.79 million square kilometres. The NSIDC noted that this is still a “preliminary” figure and that “further melting could bring it even lower”.
For years, scientists all over the world have raised alarms about the melting of the polar ice caps, which contain enough freshwater to have the potential to cause significant sea level rise. This would have catastrophic consequences in terms of coastal flooding and many regions would be completely submerged (even the entire territory of some countries, as in the case of certain atolls in the Pacific Ocean).
And there’s more: the ice sheet is white and therefore reflects sunlight, unlike the ocean, which is much darker and tends to absorb this energy. Thus, inevitably, the heat absorbed by the planet will only increase, exacerbating global warming and climate change.
Lastly, the news is particularly bad because thus far, Antarctica had seemed to better resist the increase in global average temperatures. Meanwhile, for example, heating in the Arctic has been advancing much quicker than in the rest of the Earth.
Siamo anche su WhatsApp. Segui il canale ufficiale LifeGate per restare aggiornata, aggiornato sulle ultime notizie e sulle nostre attività.
Quest'opera è distribuita con Licenza Creative Commons Attribuzione - Non commerciale - Non opere derivate 4.0 Internazionale.
It finally broke off. The iceberg A68, twice the size of Luxemburg, is no longer part of Antarctica’s Larsen C ice shelf, which could also collapse.
National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen has opened his first gallery in the city of New York, United States. It focuses on animals, the environment and the risks they both face due to climate change through images shot in diverse areas of the world including the Arctic and Antarctica. I’m taking over the @pewenvironment account this week, starting today on
The Arctic is registering an unusual winter this year. While temperatures hit a new record in November, it is now sea ice cover to have recorded its lowest extent at a time when it should be at its maximum extent. In January 2017 the ice cover was 13.38 million square kilometres, the lowest extent in almost
South African court dismisses a major lawsuit by 140,000 Zambian women and children against Anglo American for Kabwe lead poisoning. A setback for affected communities enduring the lasting impact of lead contamination.
Controversial African land deals by Blue Carbon face skepticism regarding their environmental impact and doubts about the company’s track record, raising concerns about potential divergence from authentic environmental initiatives.
Majuli, the world’s largest river island in Assam State of India is quickly disappearing into the Brahmaputra river due to soil erosion.
Food imported into the EU aren’t subject to the same production standards as European food. The introduction of mirror clauses would ensure reciprocity while also encouraging the agroecological transition.
In 40 years, the Arctic will run out of ice during summer months, as proven by the lowest icecap winter extension ever registered by satellites last March. It is a phenomenon involving half of the Arctic ice. These are some of the effects caused by the on-going climate change, documented by WWF in
Antarctica, otherwise known as the sixth continent, recorded an increase of 70% in the rate of shrinking over the last decade (1994-2003). The thickness of ice shelves in the South Pole is thinner and thinner, and it could even halve within 200 years. The research containing the data was published by Science magazine,
