Antarctic sea ice is expanding

this is a bit of a different story in the face of all the global warming we hear about,

Global warming has led to more ice in the sea around Antarctica and could help insulate the southern hemisphere from atmospheric warming.

A Dutch study says that unlike in the Arctic region, sea ice around Antarctica has expanded at a significant rate since 1985.

Published online in Nature Geoscience, the article suggests cool freshwater from melt beneath the Antarctic ice shelves has insulated offshore sea ice from the warming ocean beneath.

Richard Bintanja of the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute and colleagues say the Antarctic sea ice expands during southern hemisphere autumn and winter in response to this fresh, cool surface layer that freezes easily.

"Against the background of global climate warming, the expansion of Antarctic sea ice is an exceptional feature, which seems to be associated with decreasing sea surface temperatures in the Southern Ocean," they write

www.stuff.co.nz...

this is a different outcome than any of the global climate change models predicted,
it would look like as one pole is melting, the other is adding sea ice
the modelling that has been used to compute the loss of sea ice is not definitive and this finding
challenges the cause and effect type climate models.

that is not saying there is no climate change,
just that with any models that seek to forecast changes, we dont know all the variables that contribute to future sea ice conditions.

anyone want to explain the loss of ice at one pole while the other gains sea ice.
i have read the opinion of the author and would like opinions from members

xploder

North and south-pole are geographically not really comparable.

The south-pole is a continent with heights of 2-4 KM above sea-level. All the sea-ice is much further from the pole itself and mostly 1-year ice. Every year the sea-ice at the south-pole starts at zero, leaving less variation.

Further more, the jet-stream at the south-pole is stable compared to the meandering jet-stream at the north, basically trapping the cold air at the south-pole.

And last but not least, the south-pole doesn't have to deal with some kind of gulf-stream.

I'm no climate expert by any means, but these are some basics that, for me, make it clear north and south-pole are not expected to behave in the same manner.

reply to post by chrismir


yes, but I think the point is that computer modelling predictions about the future are, when it comes down to it, ridiculous, pseudo nostradamus stuff- unfortunately predatory statists wish to enact policies and taxes on the basis of such predictions about the future

On that account, even the weather forecast for tomorrow is on par with the fortunetellers. Still, even when lots of people complain about the correctness of the weather forecast, most rely their basic planning on it.

I'm not defending the climate-models here, but just because some aspects are not all that correct, doesn't mean it hasn't any merit.

Originally posted by chrismir
On that account, even the weather forecast for tomorrow is on par with the fortunetellers. Still, even when lots of people complain about the correctness of the weather forecast, most rely their basic planning on it.

I'm not defending the climate-models here, but just because some aspects are not all that correct, doesn't mean it hasn't any merit.

there is merit in weather forecasting (ie the next few days) and even this can be patchy at best- there is little merit in predictions about climate 20/50 years into the future- generations ahead will mock us

Good thing since some scientists are predicting the entire arctic ice will melt this summer releasing billions or more tons of methane all at once and that this would a rather major life threatening event for earth.

It may expand in that particular region but that means it will recede in another and shift.