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Posted on 12/29/2009 8:37:20 AM PST by decimon
There is increased evidence that the Arctic could face seasonally ice-free conditions and much warmer temperatures in the future.
Scientists documented evidence that the Arctic Ocean and Nordic Seas were too warm to support summer sea ice during the mid-Pliocene warm period (3.3 to 3 million years ago). This period is characterized by warm temperatures similar to those projected for the end of this century, and is used as an analog to understand future conditions.
The U.S. Geological Survey found that summer sea-surface temperatures in the Arctic were between 10 to 18°C (50 to 64°F) during the mid-Pliocene, while current temperatures are around or below 0°C (32°F).
Examining past climate conditions allows for a true understanding of how Earth’s climate system really functions. USGS research on the mid-Pliocene is the most comprehensive global reconstruction for any warm period. This will help refine climate models, which currently underestimate the rate of sea ice loss in the Arctic.
Loss of sea ice could have varied and extensive consequences, such as contributions to continued Arctic warming, accelerated coastal erosion due to increased wave activity, impacts to large predators (polar bears and seals) that depend on sea ice cover, intensified mid-latitude storm tracks and increased winter precipitation in western and southern Europe, and less rainfall in the American west.
“In looking back 3 million years, we see a very different pattern of heat distribution than today with much warmer waters in the high latitudes,” said USGS scientist Marci Robinson. “The lack of summer sea ice during the mid-Pliocene suggests that the record-setting melting of Arctic sea ice over the past few years could be an early warning of more significant changes to come.”
Global average surface temperatures during the mid-Pliocene were about 3°C (5.5°F) greater than today and within the range projected for the 21st century by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Read the full article at http://micropress.org/stratigraphy/.
Scientists studied conditions during the mid-Pliocene by analyzing fossils dated back to this time period. The USGS led this research through the Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping group. The primary collaborators in PRISM are Columbia University, Brown University, University of Leeds, University of Bristol, the British Geological Survey and the British Antarctic Survey. Learn more about PRISM research.
USGS provides science for a changing world. For more information, visit www.usgs.gov.
Subscribe to USGS News Releases via our electronic mailing list or RSS feed.
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Links and contacts within this release are valid at the time of publication.
Arctic Riviera ping.
So what is all that ice i see clogging harbors and the seas on deadliest catch?
Natural causes.
I am reliably informed that life in the Pliocene was sweet.
“Arctic Could Face Warmer and Ice-Free Conditions”
Or, it could get colder. Or stay the same.
Where’s my government grant?
you still talking to Helen Thomas after all these years?
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Now is the time to be buying beach front property on the Arctic Ocean. The price will never be better.
Dinosaur flatulence?
Great predictions based on 3 million years of speculation.
But for now, I think the arctic cold has moved to Missouri. And our ice is getting thicker.........
In other words, tweek the computations to turn up the globull warming BS.
90% of sea ice is located in the antarctic and is growing.
In general, the (arctic)ice edge is now at or slightly beyond its average location, with two notable exceptions: Hudson Bay and the Barents Sea.
>> I am reliably informed that life in the Pliocene was sweet. <<
Yeah, and During the era of the Dinosaurs, millions of years ago from 120MYA to 65MYA the CO2 levels in the atmosphere was 10X as it was today and the plant life was astounding, in fact it is what grew then that forms the Coal we use today.
"Lucy" and "Ardi" racing SUVs ....
>> Now is the time to be buying beach front property on the Arctic Ocean. The price will never be better. <<
And that beach property is sweet int he summer as the sun never sets, imagine a beautiful sunset that never ends but travels in a circle around the Horizon in the middle of June....
Simply amazing! Pass the Margaritas and the Shirley Temples.
How many SUVs were there during the Pliocene?
Did anyone see that courageous middle school student on Fox & Friends this morning? She complained about how all the classes were required to study Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” and not given an opposing view point to consider. She complained to the school board and F&F also wrote a letter and got a response that “they would look into it.”
She was asked who could provide a contrary viewpoint and she mentioned Rush, Hannity and Laura Ingraham. Though good for starters, the film “The Great Global Warming Swindle” is a better one for the class and newer followup information on Climategate is definitely recommended.
Uh Oh, I'm sounding as rational as Al Gore.......better go take my Meds.
I believe it's called the Inconvenient Truth.
And, as ice and snow begin to blanket most of North America in record quantities and area, it's even more "truth" that the scientist will have to continue to ignore to peddle their social engineering catastrophes.
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