Climate Change

The Arctic region is located at the northern-most tip of Planet Earth, which includes northern parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, Iceland and the Arctic Ocean around the North Pole. This is what the region is like.

Unlike Antarctica, which is a continent land mass covered with ice, the Arctic is defined as a region rather than a continent with a small land mass, with a much larger extension of ice, like areas of Greenland for an example, which are covered with a mile thick layer of ice. The ice caps at the Arctic are so large, that they are four times as large as Texas.

Another important feature of the region is the Arctic Ocean. It is not one of the largest oceans in the world, and does not even constitute the tenth part of the Pacific Ocean, yet it holds its significance and distinction for something else. The Arctic Ocean and the waters around it are home to more fish in the world than in any other ocean of the world.

Although the Arctic and Antarctica are often confused due to their reputation of ice covered landscapes and almost inhabitable conditions, the Arctic is very different to Antarctica in this regard. The Arctic is inhabited by a number of species, including quite a fair amount of human population. This is not the case with Antarctica, which is mostly inhabitable with an exception of the penguins. Moreover, the Arctic is much milder than Antarctica, which remains in sub-zero temperatures all around the year. The Arctic summers see temperatures as high as 50F. The region is relatively in easier access to human beings than Antarctica, and therefore, to pollution.

The region has been in the news lately. Its massive ice deposits are melting at an astonishing rate. Scientists explain this melting as a work of Global Warming and the emission of Greenhouse gases in the Earths atmosphere, resulting in a rise in the average global temperature. What makes the melting more serous is the fact, that contrary to the popular impression, the Arctic receives negligible precipitation. Its annual snowfall accounts for only 8 inches on average, which is no match for the monstrous amount of melting of its ice caps, more than 6% of which has been lost to melting during the last two decades. Even though Greenhouse gases are widely held responsible for this phenomenon, there are other forces at play as well.

The oceans of the world are connected to form one massive water body. There is a massive current, known as the Conveyor, which flows throughout the mass of this water body, that is, across the oceans of the world. This Conveyor is responsible for the flow of water across the oceans to different temperature zones, and this current carries the warm water to areas which other wise be quite cold and chilly in temperature, like Europe, the temperature of which is warmed and stabilized by these currents. In this way, these currents pretty much control the climate patterns of the world.

As the ice mass of the Arctic continues to melt, it is adding fresh water to the oceans of the world. Recent studies show that this is having an adverse impact on the Conveyor currents. Scientists have observed that the ocean currents have slowed down up to 40% of its original pace. As has been the case a number of times in the history of planet Earth, the stoppage or reversal of this current will result in a total change of climate. This will result in extreme temperature trends and severe weather across the world. Temperatures in Europe would drop down by 20 degrees and there will be hurricanes in the most unlikely of places, which would be much stronger than those which occur these days. Overall, the climate of the planet will become much more turbulent than it is today, and will become pretty hostile to human life on the planet, especially those living in the coastal areas.

We generally take problems like the melting of the Arctic polar ice caps for granted, but the consequences of this event will be affecting our lives, and the future of human civilization on Earth. It is about time that we take some substantial steps to reduce the damage to the planet caused by our own designs.