Large-scale glacial melt is one of the realities that is being addressed by researchers in regards to global warming, as these systems of ice are the chief source of water contributing to sea level rise as global temperatures increase. There is a great deal of concern over the ice sheets covering Greenland, melting due to the nature of ocean currents in the region, and the ice shelves in West Antarctica, vulnerable from melt caused by warm water from below, as well as increasingly warm air from above. In contrast, the much more massive ice sheet that covers East Antarctica has historically been considered stable, and has been recorded as gaining ice in recent years, as opposed to the losses seen by Greenland and West Antarctica.read more

Keeping in step with the record-breaking high temperatures that were experienced over the holidays, and over 2015 for that matter, the North Pole also saw unseasonably warm weather — with one projection showing the temperature going above freezing for six hours.

The same warming trend in Atlantic and Pacific waters that contributed to massive storm systems across eastern regions of North America and in northern Europe also pushed temperatures at the North Pole to the freezing mark, with Environment Canada reporting that an ocean buoy near the pole registered a temperature of 0ºC (32ºF) on Dec. 30. Seattle, a city with mild winter temperatures, was actually colder on the same day, at -1ºC (30ºF).
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A recent study has indicated that the Jakobshavn Glacier in Greenland is experiencing a rapid melt that threatens to raise sea levels by up to one centimeter.

The glacier, which is thought to have yielded the iceberg that ended the Titanic’s fated voyage, has begun to melt at an alarming rate, about four times faster than it was reducing in the 1990s. This puts it at the top of the glacier-melting charts, making it the fastest flowing river of ice in the world.

The recent research project, published in the Cryosphere journal, examined images from the German TerraSAR-X satellites to monitor the speed of the glacier.
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They release GERMS! – Those pristine-looking Alpine glaciers now melting as global warming sets in may explain the mysterious increase in persistent organic pollutants in sediment from certain lakes since the 1990s, despite decreased use of those compounds in pesticides, electric equipment, paints and other products. Could this become dangerous in the future that may on the way?
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