RSOE EDIS - Climate Change News

New Greenhouse Gas Threat Possibly Emerging

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 05:20:00 +0200

U.S. scientists are sounding the alarm that the greater breakup of the Arctic ice cap each summer could be releasing a powerful greenhouse gas that could further amplify global warming.

Warmer seas behind Antarctic ice shelf melt, study finds

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 07:18:00 +0200

When it comes to melting ice shelves in Antarctica, the danger comes from below, new research suggests. By discovering the anatomy of ice loss across this chilly expanse, research may be able to forecast how the continent will melt in the future — and also how much global seas may rise.

Melting Antarctica ice threatens faster sea-level rise

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 07:11:00 +0200

Antarctica’s massive ice shelves are shrinking because they are being eaten away from below by warm water, a new study finds, suggesting that sea levels could rise faster than many scientists have been predicting. The western chunk of Antarctica is losing 23 feet of its floating ice sheet each year.

Warm ocean driving Antarctic ice loss

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:34:00 +0200

Most of the ice being lost from Antarctica is going as a result of warm water eating the fringes of the continent, scientists say. The researchers used a satellite laser to measure the thinning occurring on ice shelves - the floating tongues of ice that jut out from the land.

Climate right for Asian mosquito to spread in N. Europe

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0200

The climate in northwestern Europe and the Balkans is becoming suitable for the Asian tiger mosquito, a disease-spreading invasive species, scientists said on Wednesday. The warning comes from scientists at the University of Liverpool, northwestern England, who say the two regions have been having progressively milder winters and warmer summers.

Arctic sea emits methane

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:49:21 +0200

Atmospheric scientist Eric Kort was flying over the Arctic Ocean three years ago, monitoring readouts as onboard sensors sniffed the air. Suddenly, as the plane dipped low over some breaks in the sea's ice cover, those instruments detected the unmistakable whiff of methane, the second most important climate-warming gas associated with human activities.

Arctic sea ice is leaking methane

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:36:12 +0200

NASA scientists have detected large releases of methane - a highly potent greenhouse gas - from the crumbling Arctic sea ice. Scientists have long been concerned about methane release from melting Arctic tundra, hut have been alarmed to discover that the ocean is a culprit too.

Himalayan glaciers not melting as fast as predicted

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 06:38:15 +0200

Several hundreds of millions of people in Southeast Asia depend, to varying degrees, on the freshwater reservoirs of the Himalayan glaciers. Consequently, it is important to detect the potential impact of climate changes on the Himalayan glaciers at an early stage. Together with international researchers, glaciologists from the University of Zurich now reveal that the glaciers in the Himalayas are declining less rapidly than was previously thought. However, the scientists see major hazard potential from outbursts of glacial lakes.

Jellyfish population on the rise, perhaps due to global warming and pollution

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 06:36:45 +0200

Global warming, pollution and human activity in marine habitats are not generally regarded as good things â€” unless you're a jellyfish. Then â€” according to a study of the jellyfish population by University of B.C. researchers â€” they have an upside. Jellyfish, which give many swimmers the creeps, are increasing in the majority of the world's coastal ecosystems, UBC researchers have found in what is being billed as the first global study of the abundance of jellyfish.

Senate hearing on "Impacts of Rising Sea Levels on Domestic Infrastructures"

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 06:34:49 +0200

Global warming contrarian Senators gave the April 19 hearing, held by the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, a wide berth, allowing an all-too-rare uninterrupted meaningful discussion between expert witnesses and elected officials. Thanks to Senator Al Franken (D-Minnesota), the hearing also confronted the need to address climate change as the underlying cause of rising sea levels.

Poll: Most Americans Now Link Extreme Weather To Climate Change

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 21:18:50 +0200

Storms and tornadoes in four Midwest states. Two earthquakes in Mexico. A dust storm followed by a sudden thunderstorm in New Delhi, India. Slushy hail that buried vehicles in Amarillo, Texas. These are just a few of the extreme weather events that hit worldwide last week, and increasingly, the public is viewing these events as side effects of global warming and climate change.

Rising Pacific seas linked to climate change: study

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 10:35:48 +0200

Sea levels in the southwest Pacific started rising drastically in the 1880s, with a notable peak in the 1990s thought to be linked to human-induced climate change, according to a new study. The research, which examined sediment core samples taken from salt marshes in southern Australia's Tasmania island, used geochemistry to establish a chronology of sea level changes over the past 200 years.

52 glacial lakes termed dangerous

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 14:43:28 +0200

At least 52 glacial lakes in Gilgit and Astore districts have been identified as â€˜potentially dangerousâ€™ by a project sponsored by the European Union and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Bye Bye Snow and Ice (and a Whole Lot More)

Sat, 07 Apr 2012 06:22:35 +0200

We've heard a lot about the life-threatening challenges facing penguins and polar bears as snow and ice disappear.

Satellite documents thinning ice shelf

Fri, 06 Apr 2012 05:31:15 +0200

A European satellite has observed a rapid retreat of one of Antarctica's ice shelves, which is half the size it was 10 years ago, the European Space Agency said Thursday. The agency's Envisat satellite shows part of the Larsen Ice Shelf, which lies on a peninsula south of Chile, has decreased from 3,463 square kilometers (1,337 square miles) in March 2002 to 1,670 square kilometers (645 square miles) today, a change the European Space Agency blames on warmer temperatures.

Climate Change Linked to Waterborne Diseases in Inuit Communities

Fri, 06 Apr 2012 05:12:51 +0200

As global warming triggers heavier rainfall and faster snowmelt in the Arctic, Inuit communities in Canada are reporting more cases of illness attributed to pathogens that have washed into surface water and groundwater, according to a new study.

Ice sheet collapse led to dramatic sea level rise

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 12:48:59 +0200

Scientists studying coral off the coast of Tahiti have linked a collapse of the world's ice sheets 14,600 years ago to a sudden 14-meter rise in global sea-levels. Until now, the date of the sea-level rise was unknown. But the new evidence dates it to 14,650 to 14,310 years ago, just when the Earth was experiencing a period of rapid climate change known as the BÃ¸lling warming.

Tulane Study Shows Sea Level Rising in Gulf of Mexico

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 12:37:58 +0200

Tulane researchers say sea levels are rising faster than expected. Gulf Coast communities from the Florida Panhandle to East Texas are most at risk. One of the authors of the Tulane study says the Earth crust underneath the Mississippi Delta is sinking, but not as fast as previously believed. But Torbjorn Tornqvist (tohr-bâ€™-yorn torn-kwist) says the Gulf of Mexico is rising faster than feared, and washing away more shoreline.

Collapse of Arctic ice underway

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 14:12:57 +0200

Scientists study the past for the clues it provides about our future. One of the best ways to know what happened millions of years ago on our planet is to drill down into the floor of the ocean to mine the ancient sediment secrets that have been buried undisturbed thousands of meters beneath the surface. Imagine long open-ended metal pipes sliding down into the mud until they are completely filled.

Climate change report: time to start preparing for the worst

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 05:11:50 +0200

It's time to start protecting people from the impact of severe-weather events, a panel says. The report offers further evidence of how the climate change conversation is shifting.