Sea Ice Melt in the Arctic
A
The thought of global warming
often conjures images of long summers and dried-up agricultural fields. But few
realise that the major impacts of this recent trend are most apparent, and most
threatening, in the earth’s northernmost region. Arctic sea ice loss has
increased exponentially in recent decades, posing a number of formidable
environmental and security challenges. And because polar regions heat up
faster, they are the most accurate indicators of what’s
in store for global climate change.
B
According to the latest
research, the Arctic ocean is
losing about 78,000 square kilometers of ice annually, with the sea ice having
dropped to its lowest recorded levels in 2012. The research reveals that the
Arctic sea ice loss began in the mid-20th century, although NASA
didn’t begin collecting satellite records of it until the 1970s. Computer
models based on the collected data suggest that it is declining at a rate of up
to 2 inches per day, or half a million square kilometers per decade. As a
result, the Arctic sea ice is now half of what is was in the 1950s, and 40
percent of what it was in the 1980s. If this trend continues, the Arctic will
have ice-free summers within the next few decades.
C
There are many consequences of
Arctic sea ice deterioration. First of all, less ice invariably means higher
water temperatures. This is because ice reflects the sunlight that water
otherwise absorbs. Increased water temperatures have an obvious impact on sea
life and surrounding wildlife, but they also directly affect global weather
patterns, wind flows, and the position of jet streams. Polar jet streams are
narrow, fast-flowing rivers of wind high in the Earth’s atmosphere that push
around cold and warm air masses and can determine weather. For example,
increases in high-atmosphere air currents result in more summer rain in certain
parts of the world, including Britain and northwestern Europe.
D
A significant side effect of
the higher temperatures is Arctic glacial melt due to the warmer water flowing
beneath the glaciers. Glacial melt creates immediate rises in sea levels and
feeds into the negative cycle of further destroying sea ice. This has been
observed not only in the Arctic but also on the opposite pole. Research at Pine
Island Glacier, a 35-mile long ice tongue in the Antarctic, has proven that
water temperature increases below glaciers are the biggest source of uncertainty
in sea level predictions. If the Pine Island Glacier continues to recede at its
current rate, a complete breakdown of the ice shelf is possible, which would
release tons of water into the Amundsen Sea and raise global sea levels by
around three to four feet.
E
The melting sea ice also
contributes to greenhouse gases. There are massive stores of methane trapped in
the permafrost and seabed in the Arctic. As the ice melts and the permafrost
disappears, the methane is released into the atmosphere. While carbon dioxide
is the gas we most commonly associate with global warming, methane also plays
an important role. Emitted by agricultural activities, landfills, and the
burning of coal and natural gas, methane is the second most damaging greenhouse
gas. It is 60 percent more effective at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, and
has much more complex interactions with other chemicals, such
as aerosol that compound its negative atmospheric impacts.
F
Perhaps less discussed,
however, are the economic and security implications. Governments of countries
that border the Arctic region have been focusing more of their attention on the
sea ice loss, and for good reason. As the Arctic sea ice melts, transportation
through the region by water becomes easier. That may seem like a benefit, but
it’s actually a source of concern. Easier transit means protecting one’s sea
borders becomes more difficult, and more costly. Imagine how much money it will
cost Canada to monitor its territory in the most northern areas, which are largely
uninhabitable. But without the protection, it leaves the country vulnerable to
illegal migration at best, and attacks at worst.
G
Then there’s the matter of
trade, and what a more open Arctic sea means for the global economy. Already
shipping and transit through the Bering Strait have increased by 118 percent
since 2008. One million tons of cargo was shipped through the region in 2012
alone. This means that countries that have territorial rights to the Arctic
region stand to gain economically through taxation of passing vessels, and
through increased trade to their regions. For that reason, the five countries
surrounding the Arctic—the United States, the Russian Federation, Canada,
Norway, and Denmark—have stepped up to defend their portion of the pie.
H
More
motivating for these countries, though, are the rich natural resources buried
under the Arctic sea floor, such
as crude oil, natural gas, and other minerals. The region is thought to hold
approximately 12 percent of the world’s undiscovered oil reserves and 30
percent of its undiscovered natural gas and natural gas liquids. Given the
state of depletion of many of these natural resources, and thus their high
economic value, it’s no wonder that everyone’s in a race to claim the melting
Arctic.