GoghGoner wrote:I've always been of the opinion that going into summer solstice was the most important measurement of extent in the year. In April, the Bering Strait is already receiving more heat from the sun than it would in September because the days are longer. Of course my opinion has no effect on anybody and the Minimum extent hoopla will continue while folks ignore the more critical time period.
jupiters_release wrote:How long has 15% sea ice cover been the standard for determining extent?
Someone explain to me how 85% open ocean can be considered ice?
jupiters_release wrote:How long has 15% sea ice cover been the standard for determining extent?
Someone explain to me how 85% open ocean can be considered ice?
Clearly, the rapid decline of the sea ice has grave consequences. When also looking beyond what's happening in the Arctic, there are further events, tipping points and feedbacks that make things worse. An earlier post contains the following rapid warming scenario:
a stronger-than-expected El Niño would contribute to
early demise of the Arctic sea ice, i.e. latent heat tipping point +
associated loss of sea ice albedo,
destabilization of seafloor methane hydrates, causing eruption of vast amounts of methane that further speed up Arctic warming and cause
terrestrial permafrost to melt as well, resulting in even more emissions,
while the Jet Stream gets even more deformed, resulting in more extreme weather events
causing forest fires, at first in Siberia and Canada and
eventually also in the peat fields and tropical rain forests of the Amazon, in Africa and South-east Asia, resulting in
rapid melting on the Himalayas, temporarily causing huge flooding,
followed by drought, famine, heat waves and mass starvation, and
collapse of the Greenland Ice Sheet.
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