BSB 160     J. Morris Hicks     (8-3-18) 
Skating on Thin Ice -- Summer of '18


As the Arctic sea ice extent (area in square kilometers) continues to track fairly close to historical norms, the thickness of that ice is not getting much attention. And that's why this entire piece is devoted to it. 

Here is the quote of the year from the source article for today's BSB:

When only looking at sea ice extent, the dramatic fall in sea ice volume may be overlooked.

That primary source is a piece by Sam Carana entitled Disappearance of Arctic Sea Ice . It was posted on 7-13-18 on the Arctic News Blogspot. By the way, this phenomenon is also being noticed by the mainstream media:

The Washington Post (7-30-18) "The thickness of Arctic Ocean sea ice declined by more than 65 percent over the past 30 years, according to a 2017 Arctic Council Report."

This alarming graph of sharply rising temperatures in the Arctic is the first thing that catches your eye in the Sam Carana piece.


Next, he uses the video below to illustrate how thin the Arctic Ocean is becoming--with thickness going down roughly 50% between June and July of this year. 

Mostly aqua colored is about 2.5 meters whereas mostly purple is about one meter. Elapsed time is just 30 days.

 
Actual Sam Carana text from the article

The animation above shows a fall in volume of some 1 meter over most of the sea ice, over the period from June 21 through July 12, 2018, with a further eight days of forecasts added.

The animation illustrates the huge amount of melting taking place from underneath, due to an inflow of heat from the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, and from warm water from rivers that end in the Arctic Ocean. Meanwhile, sea ice extent doesn't fall very much at all.

When only looking at sea ice extent, the dramatic fall in sea ice volume may be overlooked.

Complete disappearance of Arctic sea ice in September 2018 is within the margins of a trend based on yearly annual minimum volume, as illustrated by the image below (in thousands of cubic kilometers):

The Bottom Line. We should continue to look "below the surface" when trying to understand what is happening in the Arctic. As Carana explains in the article, as long as there's ice in the water, the temperature of the water remains at the freezing point. 

But when the ice is gone, the water temperature will begin to rise sharply. 

FinallyTwo new articles were posted on the Arctic News site in the past two days.  Also, here again is the link to my primary source for today:  Disappearance of Arctic Sea Ice

Speaking of mainstream media, amazingly on Sunday, the New York Times Magazine will be totally comprised of a single, 40,000 word, article. If you have a few hours over the weekend, you can read it here:  Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost Stopped Climate Change

Want to meet the author rather than read for two hours?Check out this 12-minute Amy Goodman interview with Nathaniel Rich on YouTube.


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How am I doing with all this? As long as I can envision a viable pathway for humanity going forward, I will not give up hope. And, as always,  I welcome your feedback and/or your questions.

Be well,

J. Morris (Jim) Hicks 
CEO, 4Leaf Global, LLC
 
PS: Join FREE webinar on Food-Climate Connection. Organized by PlantPure Communities, the dialogue--led by Nelson Campbell, founder of PPC, and Peter Lehner of EarthJustice--will focus on the climate impacts of our food choices.
 
Click to register  for this 8-8-18 free webinar at 7:00 pm EDT

Looking for Opportunities to Speak.  Since 2016, my research, writing and speaking has been focused on the sustainability of our ecosystem and our future as a species. With a primary emphasis on food choices, I call it the "most important topic in the history of humanity." 

After all, what could possibly be more important to humans than the survival of our species?

 (Contains 5-minute clip of my Sept. 2013 speech in Tucson) 

Latest/future talks:  Earlier this year, I spoke at a VegFest in Ft. Myers, Florida, at the  vsh.org  in Honolulu and Kahului, Maui, and at the  College of the Holy Cross   in Worcester, MA. Upcoming talks: On October 17 at Plant Powered Manhattan--NYC; and in South Haven, Michigan in November.

To schedule a presentation at a venue near you, please contact me at   jmh@4leafglobal.com

Promoting health, hope and harmony on planet Earth

Moonglow J. Morris Hicks

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