The area of ice around Antarctica has shrunk to 1.79 million square kilometers. km – to a record low value for the entire time of satellite observations. In turn, the melting of ice threatens a significant rise in the level of the World Ocean and global climate change, the newspaper article says. The Guardian dated 4 March.
It is noted that this is the third anti-record since February 25 last year, when the ice bordering the southernmost continent occupied 1.92 million square meters. km.
At the same time, scientists are especially concerned about the “Doomsday glacier” in the Amundsen Sea – if it melts, then the level of the world ocean can rise by half a meter.
“Antarctica may seem far away, but changes there could affect the global climate, and melting ice sheets will affect coastal communities around the world,” said Arian Parich, a climate scientist at Monash University.
On March 1, climatologist Alexei Kokorin said that an iceberg would sooner or later break away from the collapsing Doomsday Glacier in West Antarctica. However, when exactly this will happen is currently unknown.
Kokorin also noted that in order to reduce the rate of sea level rise, it is necessary to switch to carbon-free energy.
Earlier, on February 20, Vladimir Pinaev, Associate Professor of the Department of Environmental Safety and Product Quality Management at the RUDN Institute of Ecology, told Izvestia that the countries of the world can now take measures to minimize the consequences of the rise in the level of the World Ocean. In his opinion, the upward trend will be gradual.
On February 16, the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) stated that humanity does not eliminate the causes of climate change, only fighting its consequences. Those countries that, in accordance with the Paris Agreements, contribute to curbing the rise in global average temperatures, do not recognize the need for more ambitious changes. Experts called this phenomenon a loop of death.
