Antarctica is missing a chunk of sea ice bigger than Greenland

[Think. Again.]

July 31, 2023 11.45am EDT
Ella Gilbert, British Antarctic Survey,
Caroline Holmes, The Open University
Full Article: https://theconversation.com/antarctica-is-missing-a-chunk-of-sea-ice-bigger-than-greenland-whats-going-on-210665

Deadly heatwaves, raging wildfires and record global temperatures are upon us. But far from the flames, at the southernmost tip of the planet, something just as shocking is unfolding.

After reaching a record low minimum extent this summer there is now an area of open ocean bigger than Greenland. If the “missing” sea ice were a country, it’d be the tenth largest in the world.


Antarctic sea ice extent in 2023 compared to the 1981-2010 average. Zachary Labe

-snip-

In the face of more immediate climate concerns, why does Antarctic sea ice matter?

Floating sea ice is a pivotal climate puzzle piece. Without it, global temperatures would be warmer because its bright, white surface acts like a mirror, reflecting the sun’s energy back to space. This keeps the Antarctic – and by extension, the planet – cool.

Antarctic sea ice also plays a particularly important role in controlling ocean currents and may act as a buffer that protects floating ice shelves and glaciers from collapsing and adding to global sea levels.

In short, the loss of Antarctic sea ice matters for the whole planet.

-snip-

Full Article: https://theconversation.com/antarctica-is-missing-a-chunk-of-sea-ice-bigger-than-greenland-whats-going-on-210665

[Think. Again.]

1. Just the beginning.

[OKIsItJustMe]

2. Current Antarctic Sea Ice

I recently added a new posting in The E/E pocket reference guide: Current Antarctic Sea Ice

It includes this graph which is (IMHO) easier to read:

Source: https://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/antarctic-daily-image-update/

[Blues Heron]

3. global warming is the same heat equivalent as typical home furnaces spaced 500 feet apart

over the entire surface of the globe including all the oceans and glaciers blasting 30,000 btu/hour all day everyday, every week, month and year continuously.

[OKIsItJustMe]

4. What a useful (and terrifying) illustration

Thanks! (I think.)

[Blues Heron]

5. its my new way of imagining 3 watts per square meter of radiative forcing

the Hiroshima analogy wasnt cutting it for me , and the 1000 watt space heaters every 50 feet analogy wasnt doing it either, so this is my latest attempt at visualizing the immense heating going on.

maybe candle power - thats 100 btu/hr/candle, so candles two feet apart about? an ocean of candle flames over the whole earth.

[OKIsItJustMe]

6. No I think the furnaces work better. People have familiarity with furnace heating.

The heat output of a candle varies from candle to candle, and is low enough that people might not have a good “feel” for it.

[Blues Heron]

7. agree, furnaces are powerful, candles are too nice

the idea of a mountainside - indeed all mountainsides- covered in furnaces blasting away really is appalling!

[OKIsItJustMe]

8. I thought momentarily about a raw number of furnaces...

But, I tell people I have (at best) a tenuous grasp on 1,000. Numbers that rhyme with zillion… not so much.

I developed a way to visualize 4 Billion, but, I don’t really have a link to it, it’s just too big to get my head around it.

The idea of the entire surface of the Earth (including the oceans) with a furnace every 500 feet… I don’t have a good grasp of the size of the Earth, but I can imagine about a square mile, with ≳ 100 roaring furnaces spaced evenly…