When you think of Antarctica you usually think of a frozen wasteland with ice and snow covering everything. A new study shows that might not always be the truth in the future as the earth’s temperatures rise. Based on a study from the University of Exeter they found that the changes to the ecology of the area are unprecedented. The Antarctic Peninsula is one of the fastest-warming places on the planet. The growth of moss around the Antarctic Peninsula has greatly increased over the last 50 years due to the rise in temperatures. The group is trying to date core samples back to 1000 years so they can get a better picture of how things were before human induced climate change. Here’s a cool video about the extreme changes near the antarctic peninsula and the Extreme Ice Survey team on an expedition to South Georgia Island near the Antarctic Peninsula.
CITY TECH BLOG
Biden’s Climate Change Bill: A Small Step in the Right Direction By City Tech Blogger Kester Todd
Ever since the Industrial Revolution occurred, individuals have felt the disastrous impact of climate change. Climate change is the long-term shifts in weather patterns and temperatures caused by human activity. This is not to be confused with temperature variability, which is the long-term shifts of temperatures and weather
Kester Todd March 26, 2023
2 Responses
You bring up some important points about Antarctic warming. The future Antarctica will probably look drastically different from the white, snow covered landscape it currently is. You mention that one change the region is already experiencing is the growth of moss. Is this growth expected to continue into the future? If so, what will be some of its effects on Antarctic wildlife? How extensive is this moss growth, and is it thought to be lowering the albedo of the region by a statistically significant amount?
I am curious to know more about the effects of Climate Change in Antarctica after reading the findings, as well as, situations likely to unfold in the not too distant future. Indeed, the Earth is getting warmer on a daily basis. Due to increased heat intensity, ice glaciers are melting faster than normal. Could the carefree actions of humanity be partly blamed for this life-threatening reality? While we are daily greeted with statistical and physical evidences, the real issue remains unanswered. What does the team expect from this decade-old data gathering? I strongly believe that practical measures must be put in place immediately after obtaining results. That being said, the focus of gathering pertinent information about the primitive period must be coupled with active implementation strategies. Why? The Earth becomes warmer as the clock ticks, ‘tick, toc, tick, toc…’.