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Arctic Ice Extent Tops 2012's, But Is 6th Lowest In History

We mentioned recently the rebound in Arctic ice levels compared to those found at the end of last summer; now that the 2013 minimum has been reached, Forbes' Alex Knapp points out that 2013's figures still show the 6th lowest ice extent in recorded history. "This pattern is expected to continue as average global temperatures continue to rise, leading to further Arctic Ice melts. The volume of sea ice – that is, how thick the Arctic ice is, has also been steadily declining over the same period. And although the charts above only go back to the 80s, the loss of sea ice began several decades prior to that. In 2011, a paper published in Nature estimating Arctic ice extent for the past 1450 years shows a sharp decline in Arctic ice beginning in the mid-20th century."

45 of 310 comments (clear)

  1. So who said... by LeadSongDog · · Score: 4, Insightful

    ... that the trend of annual extent minima was supposed to be monotonic?

    --
    Oh, I'm sorry sir, I thought you were referring to me, Mr. Wensleydale.
    1. Re:So who said... by Eunuchswear · · Score: 2

      That's pretty good, I remember back in the late 80's that they said that it would all be gone by 2000 or so.

      Ah, you remember that, do you?

      "they" said.

      Who was they? When in the late 80's. Where was this published? What does "2000 or so" mean?

      --
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    2. Re:So who said... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Scientists.
      This source is dated 1960.
      New Scientist.
      The year 2000.

      http://books.google.ca/books?id=yJjFw4bzRi0C&pg=PA1453&dq=global+warming&hl=en&ei=_vZbTfq4F5OCsQPI5vyxCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

    3. Re:So who said... by Bartles · · Score: 2

      It's funny how catastrophe is constantly being pushed to just over the horizon. Just far enough ahead, so that when the time comes and it doesn't happen, people wont remember the actual prediction. There's a guy with a beard and long hair in Times Square who's been doing the same thing for 20 years. The end is near!

  2. history? by iggymanz · · Score: 4, Informative

    Reliable monitoring with authoritative of sea ice extents began only with the Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) on the satellite Seasat launched June 28, 1978.

    Very spotty records before that time are not considered reliable.

    1. Re:history? by haruchai · · Score: 5, Informative

      The Danes have excellent records going back to the '30s.
      And let's not forget that the volume is also dropping precipitously but that's much more difficult to measure.

      --
      Pain is merely failure leaving the body
    2. Re:history? by jklovanc · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Even if it goes back to the '30s, 80 years is a millisecond in geologic terms. There is too much emphasis put on "recorded history" when is is such a short time period.

    3. Re:history? by khallow · · Score: 2, Insightful

      So it's the sixth lowest record in 35 or so such records. That's a bit underwhelming. And I find it interesting how the other replier goes on to say that ice volume is down significantly even though it is "hard to measure". It's interesting how much modern climatology relies on data that is hard to verify.

    4. Re:history? by TapeCutter · · Score: 4, Interesting

      There's some pretty good volume estimates based on declassified sonar maps from the cold war, volume is now roughly 1/5th of what it was when I was born in the late 50's.

      --
      And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage? - Pink Floyd.
    5. Re:history? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      True, but you can make some deductions from biology. The existence of polar bears, not to mention their threatened status with receding ice, paints a picture of a lot of ice going way back: had there been no ice 100 years ago, there would be no polar bears. 100 years isn't time enough for them to evolve from brown bears.

    6. Re:history? by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 4, Informative

      So where were they when it was warm enough that the Vikings had two separate colonies on the southern shores of Greenland? Or was Canada still frozen while Greenland was basking in warmth?

      --
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    7. Re:history? by Mashiki · · Score: 2, Informative

      Yeah...you might just want to stop trotting out the "threatened status with ice" bit. There's no shortage of the bloody things, if anything there are more every passing year and their range of liveable area keeps expanding. In fact, there have been more than a few clashes between brown and polar bears in the last few years. As a fun point, we have them here in Ontario, and not all that far outside of the "southern half" of the province. And they range south, even in the summer here. There have been warnings posted as far south as Kesagami Provincial Park.

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    8. Re:history? by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 5, Informative

      They failed after being there for 500 years. The first 400 must have been warm enough to keep them there and in good health.

      It was only later that the climate cooled, and they were forced to change their lifestyle, and finally leave Greenland.

      So my point stands: When it was that warm in Greenland, it was certainly warm in Canada and Alaska. So where did the polar bears live, if warmer water is lethal to them?

      .
      PS. This article says the Vikings actually adapted to the colder climate, and ate more seal meat as their livestock dwindled over the colder years. They only left in the end because they couldn't trade for needed materials anymore.
      http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/archaeologists-uncover-clues-to-why-vikings-abandoned-greenland-a-876626.html

      --
      If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
    9. Re:history? by jklovanc · · Score: 2

      You are still thinking too short a time period. I am thinking 1,000, 10,000 and 100,000 years ago. What happened in the last 500 years is still to short a time to say that ice loss similar to what is happening now has not happened before and without the help of man.. Recorded history is a snap of the fingers in geologic time.

    10. Re:history? by dbIII · · Score: 3, Funny

      100 years isn't time enough for them to evolve from brown bears.

      They didn't evolve from Brown Bears. They transformed from Cartesian Bears :)
      We may as well just laugh because the science deniers have even more of a problem with evolution than they do with the climate changing. Both argue against a perfect unchanging world since day 7 which Christianity-Lite likes to pretend is the state of things.

    11. Re:history? by orzetto · · Score: 4, Interesting

      It was only later that the climate cooled, and they were forced to change their lifestyle, and finally leave Greenland.

      My favourite author, Jared Diamond, had an entire chapter on the Greenland Norse in his book Collapse. They are remarkable because many factors impacted them at the same time, and their demise was due to climate, international politics, and their own stupidity.

      Climate did get colder, but the Norse also lost their most important export, walrus tusks, because the Muslims started trading elephant tusks again with the Christians after several centuries of embargo: no one wanted walrus tusks anymore. Also, the Norse had apparently a phobia for fish, which for some reason they were unwilling to eat (or were unable to catch). They were also horrible diplomats and could not have friendly relations with the Inuit (who arrived in Greenland after the Norse), who eventually displaced them. Also, they were a very religious and conservative society, using relatively enormous resources to build a cathedral that could rival that of Nidaros in Norway.

      When it was that warm in Greenland, it was certainly warm in Canada and Alaska.

      That's a way too bold statement. Latitude is not the only predictor of temperature. I live at the same latitude as Anchorage, AK, but out temperature average is 5-10 degrees Celsius higher because we are exposed to the Gulf stream. Climate change does not have the same uniform effects in every spot.

      --
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    12. Re:history? by dave420 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You might want to ask yourself why there are more clashes between polar and brown bears... Maybe something along the lines of them losing their habitat and having to spread... No, that can't be it. They must be in cahoots with those damned liberal scientists. Hint: Measuring a populations' behaviour from outside the population isn't going to help anyone learn anything. Listen to the scientists who actually study this stuff and see what they say. Another hint: They disagree with you.

    13. Re:history? by deadweight · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Besides for all that IIRC "Greenland" was a real estate scam like "Quiet Sylvan Resort Acres Nice Trees and Wildlife Developement" is really crappy townhouses in a ghetto next to a railroad track and down the street from the toxic waste dump.

    14. Re:history? by BenfromMO · · Score: 2

      I did ask myself that very question. What could possibly cause increased contact between humans and polar bears? And it dawned on me that if their numbers were becoming smaller, contact between them and humans would be rarer and rarer even if they are pushed out of one ecosystem. You can not have contact with a species that basically does not exist. In that sense, the best bet is to indeed look to the experts and see what they say.

      I saw a wide variety of reports, but the latest research that I could find says this (the link is rather harsh and opinionated, but the facts stand) And it seems that their numbers are indeed increasing. You see, a metric such as "polar bear clashes with humans" tells you nothing about their actual numbers when you really think about it. Scientists indeed study this very problem by taking population numbers. In reality, their numbers are up and it seems that the number one cause of their original demise was probably human hunting of them to begin with. now that we protect them, their numbers are going up...and yes contact between them and humans are also going up as their populations increase. I expect their numbers to continue to increase which is the correct thing to do until they do reach a number that is satisfactory. Of course, this has nothing to do with sea ice or the extent as the polar bear numbers seem to correlate much better with the amount of hunting we do on them. And since global warming is so politicized, no one wants to study the salient facts.

      I realize you won't take my word for it or even the peer-reviewed literature that the link I gave talks about, so ask yourself this, if their numbers really are decreasing, why are people thinking of increasing quotas for hunting them?

      http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/stories/article/65674nunavut_wildlife_board_considers_request_to_up_foxe_basin_polar_bear_q/

  3. Wonder no more. by gargleblast · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Wonder no more: it is a statistical effect called Regression toward the mean. Specifically: ... following an extreme random event, the next random event is likely to be less extreme.

    Not that annual Arctic ice levels are entirely random. They are somewhat linked, hence this year's being among the lowest in observed history.

    1. Re:Wonder no more. by real-modo · · Score: 3, Funny

      A fish.

    2. Re:Wonder no more. by real-modo · · Score: 2

      * Absurd questions demand surreal answers, and the surreal answer to every question is "a fish".

  4. Arctic ice is a ridiculous liberal myth by El+Puerco+Loco · · Score: 5, Funny

    Nothing resembling "the arctic" is ever mentioned in the Bible.

  5. Re:Global Warming on Slashdot? by dave420 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    There was no misconduct found due to "ClimateGate". Read the scientific literature, not some interpretation by some talking head you happen to agree with. That's not learning, that's masturbation.

  6. Some data by amaurea · · Score: 4, Interesting

    There is some discussion on this here.

    In particular, these two images from the same article are interesting: Temperature anomaly for the medieval warm period and temperature anomaly for the period 1999-2008. Both are anomalies relative to the same 1961-1990 average, so they should be directly comparable, though of course the medieval warm period is a reconstruction with significant uncertainties.

    So to answer your question. yes, you could say that "Canada was still frozen while Greenland was basking in warmth". Though temperatures slightly elevated in some parts of Canada, most of it was cold. And none of them were anywhere near as hot as they are now.

    1. Re:Some data by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 2

      I looked at the article, and unfortunately its main point is based on work by Michael Mann. I wouldn't accept evidence from him of a cow farting. He did more to damage the reputation of "your side" than anyone else in these debates.

      So, thank you for your time, but I have nothing to add to a discussion that is based on Michael Mann.

      --
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    2. Re:Some data by I'm+New+Around+Here · · Score: 2

      No, you have the wrong post. I'm not saying amaurea is a bad person, and I'm not saying Michael Mann is a bad person.

      I'm saying Michael Mann was shown to be a bad scientist, and has damaged the AGW-believer side of this issue with remarkably poor science. I'm saying I don't trust anything he says, because of his prior bad science which not only is he not ashamed of, but which has his supporters twisting in logic knots to maintain. Name the people on the non-AGW side who have done such acts, and I will condemn them as well.

      I don't dispute that global warming is happening. I don't dispute that man has played a part in it. I think both of those things are true, but I also think the degree of our impact is being inflated by people in power for their own ambitions. I think that Michael Mann assisted those "rich and powerful people" to be able to amass more wealth and power, at the expense of the rest of us. He was rewarded with money, power, and prestige.

      So, no, my statement of not trusting Michael Mann is not an ad hominem. It is a statement of his past actions, and how he conducted himself.

      --
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  7. Oh god, you're a moron. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    2016+/-3.

    That means maybe 2013, maybe 2019. We haven't passed 2019.

    And, again, the claim wasn't that the ice would be gone, it would be a summer extent. We'd get ice back.

    Moreover, that's one guy.

    Now what about other predictions that AGW would be falsified by 2012 being about the 1956 average? Your statement merely shows one man was wrong. Big deal. Doesn't disprove the general science which has there being no sea ice by maybe 2040. But deniers you DO listen to are wrong in damn near (95%+) all cases. Yet you don't decide that the case against AGW is wrong, do you.

    Why?

    Because you're a moron.

  8. Re:ReMAX and Century 21 in Greenland by VortexCortex · · Score: 3, Funny

    Alaska had a real summer comparable to the lower 48 of the United States. Nice cabin there if the summers warm up to near 20 Celsius for months on end!

    Yes, but the warmer temps up there mean more mosquitos... which are already the size of vultures.

    A bit further south, in Canada, the mosquitoes take down cows. My gods, they've spread further south than I imagined.
    For all our sakes, let's pray they don't descend on truly South America.

  9. Re:Global Warming on Slashdot? by mvdwege · · Score: 2

    The problem is that 'Climategate' was not just investigated by scientists, but also by outside authorities.

    And all investigations independently concluded that no significant misbehaviour had occurred.

    You're an idiot.

    --
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  10. Re:Wow! by erikkemperman · · Score: 2

    ad hominid attacks

    Ad hominem, is what you wanted to say. Then you proceed to call the people you disagree with (which is fine) various names. Yeah, you're a real big hitter for your team, AC.

    --
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  11. Re:Wow! by haruchai · · Score: 2

    That actually would have been clever if the topic was evolution.

    --
    Pain is merely failure leaving the body
  12. Re:They were not there 500 years. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Well, consider the two following possible advertisements:
    • Hey, I'm banished here, but come join me in my far-away colony in Even-colder-than-Iceland!
    • and
    • Hey, I'm banished here, but come join me in my far-away colony of ... umm.. Greenland!

    Eirik "the Red" Thorvaldsson chose the 2nd version in the 10th century, for some reason.

  13. Re:why should anybody care? by sycodon · · Score: 3, Informative
    --
    When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
  14. Re:Wow! by nomadic · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Hahaa....oh man. "Arrogance." Yes, that's how science works. A->B unless the Arrogance Coefficient is too high, in which case Zeus steps in and prevents B from happening because he hates human pride. Do you even listen to yourself talk?

  15. Re:Wow! by ae1294 · · Score: 2

    Quoting The Nation as a source? Really? For those too uninformed to know what I mean, The Nation is nothing but the spigot out of which the Current Truth of radical socialist talking points runs. Seriously, it is pure propaganda. It says a lot that The Nation supports those who are promoting the man-made climate change narrative.

    Honestly I think I speak for a number of us here. We don't care anymore about Ds or Rs.... They can all go fuck themselves with a red hot poker...

  16. Re:volume? by tbannist · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You have to remember for the libertarians (the Heartland Institute's branch anyway) it's not really about the science it's about defending their ideology from an existential challenge. They believe that government is always bad and capitalism always good. The very idea of capitalism causing a massive global problem that can only be resolved by government intervention is unthinkable and thus must be false. The facts be damned, because they know the "The Truth of Capitalist Libertarianism" they know that AGW can not true.

    Also, the Heartland Institute is funded by the true believers, so they will fight this to the last breath because both their identities and their jobs depend on it.

    --
    Fanatically anti-fanatical
  17. Re:LMAO by tbannist · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It's below the long term average (by a million square km), and there are exactly two data points, so only a fool would consider that an upward trend. Also the years with lower ice extents are 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

    You're just seeing what you want to see and ignoring everything else.

    --
    Fanatically anti-fanatical
  18. Re:Wow! by erikkemperman · · Score: 2

    Look, it's fine to disagree with with Ms Klein. I also don't agree with every line she writes. I decided to post the link because the GGGP was talking about left-wing propaganda, and I think this article does a fair job of at least showing the right-wing has far from clean hands in this department.

    But then this brave AC saw fit to use a big word (wrongly) and proceeded to do exactly what that word usually derides. Viz, "nutbar", "w00w00s", "freaks".

    Also, I think it is rather telling that all of this remains anonymous. Grow a pair, will ya?

    --
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  19. Re:Wow! by mcvos · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The absolute asshole arrogance to think that anything man does will have a long-term effect on climate is unbelievable

    Because your unfounded disbelief make for such a better argument than science, doesn't it?

    Just another manufactured crisis to grab grant money and headlines

    Have you actually looked at where the money is in this debate? Are those poor, poor oil giants so strapped for cash that they can't counter the manufactured PR campaign by publicly funded scientists?

    - and the beauty is, if anyone disagrees, just claim they are not "educated" enough to understand....

    That's certainly what it looks like. That, or they're simply bought by the people with the real money.

  20. Re:One skeptic's impression by AdamHaun · · Score: 2

    The task also appears partially hindered by the better safe than sorry attitude (among the scientists?) that we should skip the science and go straight to the cure.

    I must point out that this is pretty standard risk mitigation, particularly given that reducing CO2 emissions will take many years. (The more the better, for economic reasons.) You're not supposed to wait for 100% confirmation of an impending disaster before taking steps to prevent it -- ask any insurance company. Had we started seriously trying to cut emissions 20-30 years ago, we'd be in a much better position now. Likewise, starting now is much better than waiting another ten years. And reducing fossil fuel usage is something we need to do anyway, both because of pollution and because we're running out of them. Again, starting on those problems early is a good idea.

    The enviromental movement has been a good force, but to much of a good thing here would result in economic disruption backed only by good intentions ... I just hope that society and planet survives the cure. It would be tragic if folks pushing their agenda to save the planet end up killing it.

    Those are some pretty big assumptions given the state of economics as a science, and the lack of consensus therein. What makes you think the economy is that much more fragile than the climate?

    --
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  21. Re:Wow! by HornWumpus · · Score: 2

    That says more about you then anything else.

    --
    John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
  22. Permafrost is not your friend by Tenebrousedge · · Score: 3, Interesting

    This would be funnier if it weren't completely retarded. Let me draw you a map.

    I've explained enough times to want to make this short, but most of the ground up here is some variant on permanently frozen. At some point, all of that is likely to melt, and subside. We Alaskans know a lot about what that looks like, because if you build in the wrong way in the wrong place, you'll be filling out your cross-stitch with "Home Sweet Bog". Houses built on permafrost are built on stilts.

    Also, while the Arctic is warming at a significantly greater pace than the rest of the world (1.6 degrees C up from last century, compared with .8 degrees C globally), the winters are still going to be cold as fuck (<-40) for a long time to come.

    Plus, there's <1% of the land up in Alaska that's actually owned privately. The rest is owned either by the Feds, the State, or the Natives.

    This is really just the tip of the iceberg. Your suggestion, and its underlying premise, are so wrong-headed that it's turning my stomach. Perhaps you can go be a real estate agent in Shishmaref, or one of the other villages that we're having to relocate due to climate change. Hopefully at that point you might understand exactly what it is that is offensive about your comment.

    --
    Those who advocate genocide deserve every protection afforded by law, and none afforded by common human decency.
  23. Re:Communism! by Attila+Dimedici · · Score: 2

    Oh, going straight for the "they're making us into communists!" scare? How about this: "finding ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions" is a long way from "all economic activity is controlled by the government".

    When the "greenhouse gas" you are trying to reduce the emissions of is CO2 than no there is no distance at all between "finding ways to reduce greenhose gas emissions" and "all economic activity is controlled by the government" because ALL economic activity generates CO2 (all human activity generates CO2).

    --
    The truth is that all men having power ought to be mistrusted. James Madison
  24. Re:LMAO by CauseBy · · Score: 2

    If you agree that a two-year timespan is totally meaningless to something as variable as climate, then it's disingenuous to turn around and try to give it credence.