A new study reveals that air temperatures are one of the main factors affecting the Arctic system. “The Arctic system is trending away from its 20th-century state and into an unprecedented state, with implications not only within but beyond the Arctic,” explains lead author Jason Box of the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland in Copenhagen.
The study combined several data, from biological effects to climate indicators which were physical. The records used were dated from 1971 to 2017, and it focused on nine main signs: air temperature, permafrost, hydroclimatology, snow cover, sea ice, land ice, wildfires, tundra, and terrestrial ecosystems, and carbon cycling.
The results of the study managed to surprise even the researchers. According to them, they didn’t anticipate the powerful effect of temperature.
Air Temperatures Are Guilty Of Most Changes In The Arctic System
“I didn’t expect the tie-in with temperature to be as strong as it was,” Walsh said. “All the variables are connected with temperature. All components of the Arctic system are involved in this change. Never have so many Arctic indicators been brought together in a single paper,” he adds.
Changes due to air temperatures increase are all visible all over the planet. The Arctic is profoundly affecting the rest of the world, and it is the main reason why we encounter strange weather changes all over the world. This study also helps us understand the role of the Arctic in the global scheme.
“Because the Arctic atmosphere is warming faster than the rest of the world, weather patterns across Europe, North America, and Asia are becoming more persistent, leading to extreme weather conditions. Another example is the disruption of the ocean circulation that can further destabilize climate: for example, cooling across northwestern Europe and strengthening of storms,” concludes Box. The paper is published in the Environmental Research Letters Journal.
