Truth about the ice caps scares me as a scientist and a mum
It’s correct to point out the ‘inconvenient truth’ that the area of the Arctic Ocean covered by ice has increased in the past two summers (Mail). But I’m afraid this masks the really inconvenient truth — that, overall, the ice is melting, bringing major risks for people and animals living in the Arctic, including whales, fish and seals — and potential changes to the weather here. satellites have been measuring the area of Arctic ice cover since 1979. Over that period, the area covered each summer has shrunk by nearly a third — as can be seen in the chart from the U.s. National snow And Ice Data Centre (above right). the exact area varies from year to year depending on criteria such as the direction of the wind, which brings colder or warmer weather, just as it does in Britain. In August 2013 and 2014, the area was higher than in the previous three summers. But 2007 and 2012 saw much smaller areas of ice than we might have expected. Once you average out these year-to-year blips, the shrinking of the summer sea ice is unmistakeable. this gradual melting is a result of the overall warming of the air and ocean. And that is due, in large part, to carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere by power stations, factories and vehicles burning coal, oil and gas. Making predictions is difficult, but if greenhouse gas emissions are not significantly reduced, then Arctic sea ice is likely to disappear completely in summer from the middle of this century. this could be catastrophic for life in the region. But it can be averted if urgent action is taken to reduce our use of coal, oil and gas. It’s always tempting to select one or two facts and build around them the story that climate change isn’t a real issue. Unfortunately, it is real. I have studied climate change for more than 35 years, but besides being a scientist I’m also a mother, and what I see in my scientific work disturbs me as a parent. Judging by opinion surveys, I’m not alone — four out of five people want to see governments cutting greenhouse gas emissions. the good news is that with costs of clean energy falling all the time, it’s becoming more and more affordable. Prof JOANNA HAIGH, co-director, Grantham
Institute: Climate Change And The Environment and Professor of Atmospheric
Physics, Imperial College London.