. Medical and Hospital News .




ICE WORLD
Antarctic Sea Ice Reaches New Maximum Extent
by Staff Writers
New York NY (SPX) Oct 12, 2012

illustration only

Two weeks after a new record was set in the Arctic Ocean for the least amount of sea ice coverage in the satellite record, the ice surrounding Antarctica reached its annual winter maximum-and set a record for a new high. Sea ice extended over 19.44 million square kilometers (7.51 million square miles) in 2012, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). The previous record of 19.39 million kilometers (7.49 million square miles) was set in 2006.

The map above shows sea ice extent around Antarctica on September 26, 2012, when ice covered more of the Southern Ocean than at any other time in the satellite record. The map is based on an NSIDC analysis of data from the Special Sensor Microwave/Imagers flown in the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program.

Land is dark gray, and ice shelves-which are attached to land-based glaciers but floating on the ocean-are light gray. The yellow outline shows the median sea ice extent in September from 1979 to 2000. Sea ice extent is defined as the total area in which the ice concentration is at least 15 percent.

The graph of NSIDC data shows the maximum extent for each September since 1979 in millions of square kilometers. There is a lot of variability from year to year, though the overall trend shows growth of about 0.9 percent per decade.

According to a recent study by sea ice scientists Claire Parkinson and Donald Cavalieri of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Antarctic sea ice increased by roughly 17,100 square kilometers per year from 1979 to 2010. Much of the increase, they note, occurred in the Ross Sea, with smaller increases in Weddell Sea and Indian Ocean.

At the same time, the Bellinghausen and Amundsen Seas have lost ice. "The strong pattern of decreasing ice coverage in the Bellingshausen/Amundsen Seas region and increasing ice coverage in the Ross Sea region is suggestive of changes in atmospheric circulation," they noted.

"The year 2012 continues a long-term contrast between the two hemispheres, with decreasing sea ice coverage in the Arctic and increasing sea ice coverage in the Antarctic," Parkinson added.

"Both hemispheres have considerable inter-annual variability, so that in either hemisphere, next year could have either more or less sea ice than this year. Still, the long-term trends are clear, but not equal: the magnitude of the ice losses in the Arctic considerably exceed the magnitude of the ice gains in the Antarctic."

On their Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis blog, scientists from the University of Colorado wrote: "Comparing winter and summer sea ice trends for the two poles is problematic since different processes are in effect. During summer, surface melt and ice-albedo feedbacks are in effect; winter processes include snowfall on the sea ice, and wind.

"Small changes in winter extent may be a more mixed signal than the loss of summer sea ice extent. An expansion of winter Antarctic ice could be due to cooling, winds, or snowfall, whereas Arctic summer sea ice decline is more closely linked to decadal climate warming."

National Snow and Ice Data Center (2012, October 2) Poles Apart: A record-breaking summer and winter.

NASA (2009, September 1) What's Holding Back Antarctic Sea Ice from Melting.

Related Links
Earth Observatory
National Snow and Ice Data Center
Beyond the Ice Age




.
.
Get Our Free Newsletters Via Email
...
Buy Advertising Editorial Enquiries




.

. Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle



ICE WORLD
Warming ocean could start big shift of Antarctic ice
Sydney, Australia (SPX) Sep 21, 2012
Fast-flowing and narrow glaciers have the potential to trigger massive changes in the Antarctic ice sheet and contribute to rapid ice-sheet decay and sea-level rise, a new study has found. Research results published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveal in more detail than ever before how warming waters in the Southern Ocean are connected intimately with the ... read more


ICE WORLD
Planning can cut costs of disasters: World Bank

12 Chinese workers killed, 24 hurt in dormitory blaze

Far, far beyond wrist radios

World leaders meet on disaster management in Japan

ICE WORLD
Soyuz is given the "go" for tomorrow's Arianespace launch with a pair of Galileo navigation spacecraft

Apple had warning of mapping problems

Using LabSat in the absence of GPS

New Telit GPS Miniature Receiver Based on Latest 3-D Embedded Technology is Market's Smallest

ICE WORLD
UN report warns of possible rise in child marriages

Chimps said attacking humans in Africa

Nasty noises: Why do we recoil at unpleasant sounds

New human neurons from adult cells right there in the brain

ICE WORLD
Scientists discover that shape matters in DNA nanoparticle therapy

Taiwan butterfly pioneer laments threat to species

Sitting on top of the world

US zoo cites liver disease in baby panda's death

ICE WORLD
International groups urge Francophone nations to fight AIDS

Cholera 'under control' in Iraqi Kurdistan: minister

Glowing DNA invention points towards high speed disease detection

Mosquito genetics may offer clues to malaria control

ICE WORLD
Beverage tycoon tops Forbes' China rich list

China Nobel winner defends prize -- and Mao

Former Chinese official sheds light on dark side of power

Chinese dissident author savages Beijing at German awards

ICE WORLD
Dutch navy detains alleged Somali pirates after attack

Colombia hopes FARC deal will bring peace

Mexico captures Zetas cartel capo 'El Taliban': navy

Indian state in grip of a drug epidemic

ICE WORLD
China bank lending pulls back in September

IMF wants to give Greece two more years on deficit

China economy to dodge hard landing: IMF

China central bank focused on inflation before growth


Memory Foam Mattress Review

Newsletters :: SpaceDaily Express :: SpaceWar Express :: TerraDaily Express :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News

.

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2012 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement