New mechanism uncovered, causing potentially rapid Antarctic Glacier melt

An Australian-led research team found that sea levels may rise much faster than previously predicted by models, because changes by disruptive westerly winds, weren’t taken into account. Conservative estimates so far, projected irreversible melting in the course of a few centuries, depending on the temperature increase. Related Each degree of global warming might ultimately raise…

The Runaway Glaciers in West Antarctica

NASA/JPL press release, May 12, 2014: A new study by researchers at NASA and the University of California, Irvine, finds a rapidly melting section of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet appears to be in an irreversible state of decline, with nothing to stop the glaciers in this area from melting into the sea. The study presents…

Canada’s shocking oilsands operation (Aerial footage)

DeSmog Canada published a series of aerial photos from Canada Alberta. Alex MacLean is one of America’s most famed and iconic aerial photographers. His perspective on human structures, from bodies sunbathing at the beach to complex, overlapping highway systems, always seems to hint at a larger symbolic meaning hidden in the mundane. By photographing from above, MacLean shows…

With further Arctic Amplification, How fast will Greenhouse Gas emissions accelerate in the Arctic Circle?

Introduction to Methane Hydrate “Methane Hydrates and Contemporary Climate Change” (2011) IDENTIFICATION This post “A Mechanism for Shallow Methane Hydrate Dissociation”, explores possible mechanism which could release vast quantities of shallow Methane Hydrate into the ocean and atmosphere.       CH4 Release The following studies explore the release of CH4 emissions in the Arctic region. OBSERVATION…

No One Is Immune: IPCC Study Offers Bleak Climate Change Outlook

A new massive report on global warming says dangers will worsen as the climate changes. Related IPCC Climate Change Report The Five Key Points IPCC Report: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis IPCC Report: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability New York Times: Climate Study Puts Diplomatic Pressure on Obama

Worst Weather Ever: Record Breaking Heat Waves Explained

National Geographic: Experts compare modern heat waves to the past and show what’s really going on with Carbon Dioxide. Related Some 15% of Pacific islands wiped out by 1m sea level rise – IPCC Carbon dioxide benchmark hits new heights, worries scientists Citigroup says the ‘Age of Renewables’ has begun

The cost of living in the Anthropocene

What are the true cost of living in the Anthropocene? Wikipedia: The Anthropocene is an informal geologic chronological term that serves to mark the evidence and extent of human activities that have had a significant global impact on the Earth‘s ecosystems. The term was coined recently by ecologist Eugene F. Stoermer and has been widely popularized by the Nobel Prize-winning atmospheric chemist, Paul Crutzen, who regards the…

The Rate of Sea-Level Rise

A new study paper out in nature (Nature Climate Change / 2014 / doi:10.1038/nclimate2159), explores why the rise of sea-level has slowed in the last decade. Unsurprisingly the slow-down coincidences with the observed climate hiatus (IPCC AR5, Ocean heat content uptake). Because  heat is distributed differently, depending on the state of ENSO (between El Nino or La Nina). Abstract: Present-day sea-level…