North Pole May Be Ice-Free This Summer
June 27, 2008 – 8:52 pmFor the first time in recorded history, the North Pole may be free of ice this summer, according to apublished report Friday.
The unique prospect of sailing in open waters at the North Pole during the minimum ice cover in August and September has about a 50-50 chance of becoming reality, says one climate scientist’s prediction holds true.
“The issue is that, for the first time that I am aware of, the North Pole is covered with extensive first-year ice — ice that formed last autumn and winter,” Dr. Mark Serreze, a senior research scientist at the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo., told The Independent newspaper in London. “I’d say it’s even odds whether the North Pole melts out.”
One-year ice is highly vulnerable to melting during the summer months, and satellite data over recent weeks has shown the rate of retreat to be faster than last year, when there was an all-time record loss of summer sea ice in the Arctic, according to the report.
