9,749
edits
Difference between revisions of "Antarctica"
no edit summary
Westarctica (talk | contribs) (added category) |
Westarctica (talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 206: | Line 206: | ||
Some of Antarctica has been warming up; particularly strong warming has been noted on the Antarctic Peninsula. A study by Eric Steig published in 2009 noted for the first time that the continent-wide average surface temperature trend of Antarctica is slightly positive at >0.05 °C (0.09 °F) per decade from 1957 to 2006. This study also noted that West Antarctica has warmed by more than 0.1 °C (0.2 °F) per decade in the last 50 years, and this warming is strongest in winter and spring. This is partly offset by autumn cooling in [[East Antarctica]]. There is evidence from one study that Antarctica is warming as a result of human carbon dioxide emissions, but this remains ambiguous. The amount of surface warming in West Antarctica, while large, has not led to appreciable melting at the surface, and is not directly affecting the [[West Antarctic Ice Sheet]]'s contribution to sea level. Instead the recent increases in [[glacier]] outflow are believed to be due to an inflow of warm water from the deep ocean, just off the continental shelf. The net contribution to sea level from the [[Antarctic Peninsula]] is more likely to be a direct result of the much greater atmospheric warming there. | Some of Antarctica has been warming up; particularly strong warming has been noted on the Antarctic Peninsula. A study by Eric Steig published in 2009 noted for the first time that the continent-wide average surface temperature trend of Antarctica is slightly positive at >0.05 °C (0.09 °F) per decade from 1957 to 2006. This study also noted that West Antarctica has warmed by more than 0.1 °C (0.2 °F) per decade in the last 50 years, and this warming is strongest in winter and spring. This is partly offset by autumn cooling in [[East Antarctica]]. There is evidence from one study that Antarctica is warming as a result of human carbon dioxide emissions, but this remains ambiguous. The amount of surface warming in West Antarctica, while large, has not led to appreciable melting at the surface, and is not directly affecting the [[West Antarctic Ice Sheet]]'s contribution to sea level. Instead the recent increases in [[glacier]] outflow are believed to be due to an inflow of warm water from the deep ocean, just off the continental shelf. The net contribution to sea level from the [[Antarctic Peninsula]] is more likely to be a direct result of the much greater atmospheric warming there. | ||
In 2002 the Antarctic Peninsula's [[Larsen-B | In 2002 the Antarctic Peninsula's [[Larsen-B Ice Shelf]] collapsed. Between 28 February and 8 March 2008, about 570 km2 (220 sq mi) of ice from the [[Wilkins Ice Shelf]] on the southwest part of the peninsula collapsed, putting the remaining 15,000 km2 (5,800 sq mi) of the ice shelf at risk. The ice was being held back by a "thread" of ice about 6 km (4 mi) wide, prior to its collapse on 5 April 2009. According to NASA, the most widespread Antarctic surface melting of the past 30 years occurred in 2005, when an area of ice comparable in size to California briefly melted and refroze; this may have resulted from temperatures rising to as high as 5 °C (41 °F). | ||
A study published in Nature Geoscience in 2013 (online in December 2012) identified central Westarctica as one of the fastest-warming regions on Earth. The researchers present a complete temperature record from [[Westarctica]]'s [[Byrd Station]] and assert that it "reveals a linear increase in annual temperature between 1958 and 2010 by 2.4±1.2 °C". | A study published in Nature Geoscience in 2013 (online in December 2012) identified central Westarctica as one of the fastest-warming regions on Earth. The researchers present a complete temperature record from [[Westarctica]]'s [[Byrd Station]] and assert that it "reveals a linear increase in annual temperature between 1958 and 2010 by 2.4±1.2 °C". | ||