11 May 2015, SCIENCEINSIDER: Antarctic researchers ponder challenges posed by increasing sea ice. Scientists working in Antarctica are feeling the impact of climate change in ways the public might find surprising. Although global warming is causing Arctic ice to melt and glaciers around the world to shrink, the problem in Antarctica is that the sea ice surrounding the continent is increasing and now hampering ship navigation and resupply operations. This week, scientists and logistics experts from the 30 nations working on the continent are meeting in Hobart, Australia, to exchange ideas on coping with the sea ice challenge. Read More here
Category Archives: Impacts Observed & Projected
10 May 2015, Climate News Network: Plant growth may speed up Arctic warming: Arctic plants may absorb more greenhouse gases as the region warms – but scientists say this could intensify the warming rather than moderate it. Green may not automatically mean innocent or planet-friendly after all. Korean and German scientists have identified a mechanism that could encourage plants to take up more carbon dioxide – and at the same time amplify Arctic warming by 20%. This counter-intuitive finding is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read More here
8 May 2015 One Million Women is seeking support: We have been campaigning over the past 12 months urging the World Heritage Committee to declare the Great Barrier Reef as ‘World Heritage in Danger’ to protect it from reckless industrialisation for dirty coal and coal seam gas, and from chronic climate change threats. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE We have over 40,000 signatures to our open letter to the World Heritage Committee but we want to get that to 100,000 by the end of the month! (NEXT MONTH the World Heritage Committee meets to rule on the Reef’s fate – whether or not to declare it ‘in Danger’ and protect it for future generations.) PLEASE SHARE our new 1 Million Women clip with all your networks and ADD YOUR NAME to protect the Reef (if you haven’t already)! To Give Support go here
3 May 2015, Climate News Network: US braces itself for even worse wildfire season. Years of drought and higher temperatures mean the chance of devastating wildfires in the southwest US is higher than ever − particularly in southern California. The firefighters are primed, hoses at the ready. May and June are often the peak months for forest fires in the southwest of the US, and the outlook for this year is grim. “I wish I could have some hope,” says Dr Wally Covington, director of the Ecological Restoration Institute at North Arizona University. “It’s just a terrible situation in southern California.” Read More here