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NASA Finds Sea Ice Driving Arctic Air Pollutants

By Guest PostMarch 4, 2012Environmentamundsen gulf, arctas, arctic ocean, arctic sea, Arctic sea ice, arizona, atmosphere, atmospheric model, beaufort sea, bromex, bromine, bromine explosion, bromine monoxide, bromine plume, bromine release, canada, canadian arctic, chemical process, depletion, Germany, ground-level ozone, mercury experiment, molecules, NASA, ozone, pollutant, radiation, reduction, salt, sea ice, son nghiem, texas, toxic mercury, troposphere, united kingdom, united states

PASADENA, Calif. – Drastic reductions in Arctic sea ice in the last decade may be intensifying the chemical release of bromine into the atmosphere, resulting in ground-level ozone depletion and the deposit of toxic mercury in the Arctic, according to a new NASA-led study.

The connection between changes in the Arctic Ocean’s ice cover and bromine chemical processes is determined by the interaction between the salt in sea ice, frigid temperatures and sunlight. When these mix, the salty ice releases bromine into the air and starts a cascade of chemical reactions called a “bromine explosion.” These reactions rapidly create more molecules of bromine monoxide in the atmosphere. Bromine then reacts with a gaseous form of mercury, turning it into a pollutant that falls to Earth’s surface. (more…)

Arctic Sea Ice Reaches Minimum 2011 Extent, the Second Lowest in the Satellite Record

By Guest PostSeptember 19, 2011EnvironmentArctic, arctic ocean, Arctic sea ice, arctic sea ice extent, atmosphere, california, floating ice chunks, goddard space flight center, greenbelt, greenhouse gases, mark serreze, NASA, national snow and ice data center, sea ice, texas, university of colorado boulder, walt meier, warming temperatures

The blanket of sea ice that floats on the Arctic Ocean appears to have reached its lowest extent for 2011, the second lowest recorded since satellites began measuring it in 1979, according to the University of Colorado Boulder’s National Snow and Ice Data Center.

The Arctic sea ice extent fell to 1.67 million square miles, or 4.33 million square kilometers on Sept. 9, 2011. This year’s minimum of 1.67 million square miles is more than 1 million square miles below the 1979-2000 monthly average extent for September — an area larger than Texas and California combined. (more…)

New Video/Images of Walrus Haulout

By Guest PostSeptember 14, 2011Environment, Naturealaska, arctic basin, chukchi sea barrier beach, female walruses, human disturbance, icy cape, inupiaq community, native village of point lay, pacific walruses, point lay, radio tracking walruses, radio transmitters, sea ice, usgs alaska science center, walrus haulouts, walruses

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The USGS Alaska Science Center has released new high-resolution video of Pacific walruses hauling out near Point Lay, Alaska, in late August, 2011.

Also available on the USGS Alaska Science Center walrus website are animations of the walruses’ movements as tracked by radio transmitters, and FAQs on the ongoing walrus studies. (more…)

Pacific Walruses Studied as Sea Ice Melts

By Guest PostAugust 20, 2011Environment, Nature, Sciencearctic basin, bering, chad jay, chukchi seas, continental shelf, native village, northwest of barrow, northwestern alaska coast, pacific walrus, point lay, russia, satellite radio tags to walruses, sea, sea floor, sea ice, usgs, usgs alaska science center, walruses

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — USGS Alaska Science Center researchers, in cooperation with the Native Village of Point Lay, will attempt to attach 35 satellite radio-tags to walruses on the northwestern Alaska coast in August as part of their ongoing study of how the Pacific walrus are responding to reduced sea ice conditions in late summer and fall. (more…)

High-Tech Software and Unmanned Planes Allow Scientists to Keep Tabs on Arctic Seals

By Guest PostDecember 15, 2010Environment, Natureaerial photos, aircraft, Arctic, arctic ringed seal, atmosphere, bearded, bering sea, cameras, climate scientists, earth, elizabeth weatherhead, four species of arctic seals, greenhouse gases, ice floes, marine, noaa, novel project, peter boveng, polar ecosystems, ribbon seals, ringed, scan eagle, sea ice, seal populations, seals, spotted, temperatures, terrestrial mammals

A novel project using cameras mounted on unmanned aircraft flying over the Arctic is serving double duty by assessing the characteristics of declining sea ice and using the same aerial photos to pinpoint seals that have hauled up on ice floes.

The project is the first to use aircraft to monitor ice and seals in remote areas without putting pilots and observers at risk, said Elizabeth Weatherhead of the University of Colorado at Boulder, who is leading the study team. Weatherhead is a senior scientist at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, a joint venture of CU-Boulder and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (more…)

NSF’s Nathaniel B. Palmer Sails with Sweden’s Oden to Study Antarctic Peninsula Ecosystem

By Guest PostDecember 10, 20101 commentEnvironmentamundsen sea polynya, antarctic circumpolar current, antarctic peninsula ecosystem, antarctic waters, sea ice

Amundsen Sea Polynya International Research Expedition (ASPIRE) Combines Research and Education

In a unique and complex example of “science diplomacy,” teams of U.S. and Swedish scientists are sailing this month aboard two research vessels to study the ecology of the Amundsen Sea, one of the least-explored and most productive bodies in Antarctic waters, and to gauge the potential effects of a changing climate on the Southern Ocean. (more…)

Polar Bears (getting attention)

By ShamsMay 19, 2008Environmentpolar bear, sea ice

It’s old news already. But good to hear again. Polar bear is now in the list of endangered species of U.S government. Polar bears sea ice habitat has melted dramatically in recent decades (a clear sign of global warming). And further receding of polar ice is likely in the coming years (45 years in the count that the PBs will face trouble harder).

(more…)

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