The National Snow and Ice Data Center reported today that Arctic sea ice has reached its lowest point in recorded history! Hmmmmm. Just how long has that particular history been recorded? You'll be surprised. But then again, if you've already seen the movie The Little Man-Made Global Warming Boy Who Cried Wolf, maybe you won't be.Update 8/19: KVNU's For the People provides additional insights about the same article.
September 2005 used to mark the year with the lowest Arctic sea ice ever recorded in the history of earth, and this year is now worse than that.
"Today is a historic day," said Mark Serreze, a senior research scientist at the center. "This is the least sea ice we've ever seen in the satellite record and we have another month left to go in the melt season this year."
Satellite measurements showed 2.02 million square miles of ice in the Arctic, falling below the Sept. 21, 2005, record minimum of 2.05 million square miles, the agency said.
This data has been recorded since near the beginning of earth's history--sort of. Well, the recording all started way back just after the end of the Mesozoic era...1970 to be exact.
Scientists began monitoring the extent of Arctic sea ice in the 1970s when satellite images became available.
Holy smokes! We're done for!!!
Here are some other of my observations:
- The skies were unusually clear during June and July, and wind conditions were abnormally high. "It is very strong evidence that we are starting to see an effect of greenhouse warming," [Sereze] said. Okay, he's the expert.
- The melt is not occurring with near as much rapidity on the Atlantic side. I suspect it's because of all the
greenhouseouthouse gas coming out of Hollywood.
Update: 8/19 Craig Limesand of KVNU For the People writes more about it here. John comments on KVNU that:
Didn’t the article also say that the polar ice on the north atlantic side is at near normal levels?
Doesn’t it also state that this latest measurement is the new record low, beating the record two years ago? How is it possible that the ice situation improved in 2006? Maybe global warming took a vacation, or maybe it is the carbon credits. This is complete hype and getting to be a total joke.
Thankfully, the hysteria is starting to be exposed and there is a push toward some mature evaluation.
It's interesting to see the ratcheting up of franticness as the Man-Made Global Warming lobby starts to see that more and more of us are onto them and the gig is almost up.
Frank, you really need to work on your ability to accept when you are wrong.
ReplyDeleteDon't we all.
ReplyDelete;-)
Did you watch "60 Minutes" last night? They sent Scott Pelley to Patagonia and Antarctica to talk to scientists who are tracking the rapid warming. You can argue about what the cause may be, but it's an established fact we're in a warming phase.
ReplyDeleteRichard,
ReplyDeleteGood point. I'm not disputing whether the globe is warming. It appears that it is. It's just that 37 years of measurement of sea ice does not evidence make that man is the cause.
Satellite imagery is just one source of data. Ice cores from Antarctica have preserved the atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gasses going back for the last 650,000 years. And guess what, current atmospheric concentrations of CO2--380 parts per million--are 27 percent higher than the highest levels found in the last 650,000 years.
ReplyDelete