Ice Caps Melt Faster than Ever

The Arctic ice caps are melting at a faster rate than scientists had predicted, a rate in which there will be little ice present within the next decade and is expected to melt completely within the next 20 to 30 years, according to expedition leader, Pen Hadow.

Hadow lead a 73-day expedition across the ice caps making over 6,000 observations and calculations. These measurements included the thickness of the ice, density of the fallen snow, along with the temperature of the sea and climate.

Along the 250-mile trek they found the average thickness of the ice to be 6 feet, typical in a first year piece of ice. These new findings allowed Cambridge Professor, Peter Wadhams to calculate these new findings in the cap’s ever increasing melting rate. Wadhams concluded, “In about 10 years, the Arctic ice will be considered as open sea.”

Once the ice is completely melted the earth will begin to change drastically and temperature will increase even more. These changes can include flooding, more extreme weather conditions, and stronger carbon emissions. This unexpected increase in the level of melting contributes to the importance of a global change. -greenandsave