Yeah you’ve read that right, where as the average summer temperature across the UK was a chilly 14.1°C, thermometers in the Canadian High Arctic are reported to have hit a record high of 22°C in July, the average temperature for this region is 5°C.
Not only were these temperatures a real source of concern, but scientists say that the amount of ice in the sea dropped by almost 40% reaching the lowest levels ever recorded. The graphic below shows just how the ice has been changing in area over the past 30 years.
Graphic showing area of arctic ice changes in Million Sq KM.
These changes mean big trouble to a region that is already incredibly sensitive to global warming. The high temperatures resulted in “catastrophic mudslides” as the permafrost1 melted, one scientist is quoted as seeing “the landscape being torn to pieces, literally before our eyes.”
Tearfund’s primary concern is the effect that climate change has on the world’s poor. The earlier and greater melting, and the later, slower refreezing of the ice affects when and where people, living in the Arctic region, can hunt and has major consequences on their safety when travelling across the ice.
Mark Serreze, a senior scientist at the National Snow and Ice Data Centre2, believes that "We may see an ice-free Arctic Ocean in summer within our lifetimes. The implications are disturbing."
Our government is unveiling a climate change bill at the beginning of November, check out how you can mobilise your MP to protect the poor and vulnerable by clicking here.
The Independent ran this story on their front cover on 3rd October 2007 and can be found here.
1Permafrost is the layer of soil, just under the earth’s surface that’s frozen all year round. It can be thousands of years old. For more info click here
2The National Snow and Ice Data Centre is an organisation that supports research into the world's frozen realms.