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ice is a species?

March 27, 2009 by  
Filed under climate change

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I found an article today that I just find so, SO fascinating that I felt it was important to share with my readers.  How’s this for an introductory paragraph:

sleeping-polar-bear-fcg

A different kind of ice is replacing ancient Arctic ice. The new stuff is qualitatively different. It’s thinner, darker, wetter. Worse, it may already be changing the local weather and the ability to grow new ice. It could even alter the oceanic circulation that mediates global climate, reports Nature. Oh, it’s bad for polar bears too.

Apparently, as the article mentions, there are three types of ice: multiyear sea ice, which takes years to grow, thicken, and stays around for a long time.  There is nilas ice, which is unbroken sheets of ice. And, then there is grease ice.  This is the bad stuff.
Because of excess melting of the multiyear ice, there are more open areas for waves.  The waves chop up new ice as it tries to re-from, creating grease ice, which sets as thin pancakes of ice.  Why is this a problem?
  • Round pancakes leave areas of dark open water between them.
  • This open water accelerates warming since less of the Sun’s radiation is reflected (albedo).
  • Seawater slops up between the pancakes onto the ice so that falling snow melts rather than freezes on top.
  • Wetter pancake ice keeps the overall surface darker and warmer.

I think it is important to note that while many argue there was more ice created in 2008, therefore the belief in global warming should not be believed and is just rhetoric, it is extremely important to note what kind of ice was formed.  In other words, multiyear ice is the good stuff.  It’s NOT being made.

The original article can be found HERE, via MotherJones

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