# Snow and Ice Going Away with Melting Arctic

- Link: https://greenlivingguy.com/2018/06/snow-ice-going-away-melting-arctic/
- Published: 2018-06-11T00:15:38-04:00
- Author: greenlivingguy

Our Arctic snow and ice are at question. Scientists have known for a long time that
as climate change started to heat up the Earth, its effects would be [most pronounced in the Arctic](https://governmentshutdown.noaa.gov/).
This has many reasons, but climate feedbacks are key. As the Arctic warms, [snow and ice](https://greenlivingguy.com/2019/04/a-6072-cell-battery-at-10-degrees/)
melt, and the surface absorbs more of the sun’s energy instead of reflecting it 
back into space. This makes it even warmer, which causes more melting, and so on.

_**Melting Arctic sends a message: Climate change is here in a big way from The 
Conversation**_

In fact and during the last time I was at Sundance Film Festival in 2010 I met [Lester Brown](https://greenlivingguy.com/2011/05/interview-with-lester-brown-and-coco-from-the-un-on-climate-refugees/)
and a woman named Coco from the UN. We talked about Climate Refugees from the [Arctic](https://greenlivingguy.com/2019/12/ice-permafrost-lets-really-talk-about-our-arctic/)
melting.

This expectation has become a reality that I describe in my new book “[Brave New Arctic](https://press.princeton.edu/titles/11223.html).”
It’s a visually compelling story: The effects of warming are evident in shrinking
ice caps and glaciers and in [Alaskan roads buckling](https://www.bloomberg.com/tosv.html?url=L25ld3MvZmVhdHVyZXMvMjAxNi0wOC0wMi90aGUtYWxhc2thbi1oaWdod2F5LWlzLWxpdGVyYWxseS1tZWx0aW5nPw==&uuid=23672d10-7f47-11e8-ad2b-7f6de8aa4956&vid=)
as permafrost beneath them thaws.

![Scientists on arctic sea ice in the chukchi sea surrounded by melt ponds july 
4 2010 Nasakathryn hansen](https://i0.wp.com/greenlivingguy.com/wp-content/uploads/
2018/06/img_5583.jpg?resize=496%2C331&quality=52&ssl=1 "Snow and Ice Going Away 
with Melting Arctic - The Green Living Guy")

Scientists on Arctic sea ice in the Chukchi Sea surrounded by melt ponds July 4 
2010 NASAKathryn Hansen

But for many people the Arctic seems like a faraway place. So stories of what is
happening there seem irrelevant to their lives. It can also be hard to accept that
the globe is warming up while you are shoveling out from the latest snowstorm.

Since I have spent more than 35 years studying snow, ice and cold places, people
often are surprised. Especially when I tell them I once was skeptical that human
activities were playing a role in climate change. My book traces my own career as
a climate scientist. Also, the evolving views of many scientists I have worked with.

When I first started working in the Arctic, scientists understood it as a region
defined by its snow and ice. All with a varying but generally constant climate. 
In the 1990s, we realized that it was changing. However it took us years to figure
out why.

Now scientists are trying to understand what the Arctic’s ongoing transformation
means. Especially for the rest of the planet. Moreover whether the Arctic of old
will ever be seen again.

_For the entire engaging story by [The Conversation](http://theconversation.com/melting-arctic-sends-a-message-climate-change-is-here-in-a-big-way-95573),
_April 26, 2018 6.38am EDT by Mark Serreze

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 greenlivingguy

 The Green Living Guy, Seth Leitman is an independent power producer, a green living
expert, and Editor of the McGraw-Hill, TAB Green Guru Guides. Seth is also an Author,
Radio Host, Reporter, Writer and an Environmental Consultant on green living. The
Green Living Guy writes about green living, green lighting, the green guru guides
and more. Seth's books range from: # Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Bob Brant
and Seth Leitman (2nd and 3rd editions) # Build Your Own Plug-in Hybrid Electric
Vehicle by Seth Leitman # Build Your Own Electric Motorcycle by Carl Vogel # Green
Lighting by Seth Leitman, Brian Clark Howard and Bill Brinsky # Solar Power For 
Your Home by David Findley # Renewable Energies For Your Home by Russel Gehrke #
Do-it-Yourself Home Energy Audits by David Findley # Build Your Own Small Wind Power
System by Brian Clark Howard and Kevin Shea # and more green living books to follow.

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