A
group of three British explorers collecting data on ocean acidification
for the UK’s Catlin Arctic Survey returned from a 60-day trip to the
North Pole, reporting the unexpected and unprecedented finding of
enormous areas of precariously thin ice.
Expedition leader Ann
Daniels also said that due to the lack of mass, the ice drifted very
quickly southward, which caused the team to cover 500 nautical miles
rather than the 268 initially planned.
At times the team also had to
swim across too-thin ice or open water, sometimes traversing ice sheets
that were only 3-4 inches thick.
At one point, the ice floe broke upon which their tent was set up, with everyone fortunately escaping harm.
According
to David McGuire of the US Geological Survey and other researchers, the
Arctic region is melting twice as fast as the rest of the planet.
Moreover,
as the Arctic sea becomes more saturated with carbon dioxide, its
ability to function as a natural sink for up to 15% of the Earth’s
carbon diminishes.
This could lead to the Arctic becoming a source of greenhouse gases, which would dangerously accelerate global warming.
Our
appreciation Dr. Daniels and other Catlin Arctic scientists for your
first-hand observations that inform us about the area’s perilous
course. Let us all respond by quickly adopting lifestyles that preserve
the delicate and vital ecosystems of our planet.
In a June 2009
video message, Supreme Master Ching Hai spoke of the alarming shifts in
this important polar region as well as how to halt them.
Supreme Master Ching Hai : The
change in Arctic ice cover is dramatic, with climatologists saying that
only 10 percent now is older and thick ice, while over 90 percent is
newly formed and thin.
Now, many of these areas where we are
seeing such devastating effects of climate change, such as Arctic melt,
are all directly related to the Earth’s temperature increasing.
So,
we must cool the planet, first and foremost. To cool the planet most
quickly, we have to stop consuming meat in order to stop the livestock
raising industry.
If everyone in the world would adopt this
simple but most powerful practice of an animal-free diet, then we could
reverse the effect of global warming in no time.
http://www.insing.com/news/international-america-europe/arctic-team-reports-unusual-conditions-near-pole/id-04321800?nav=50201http://topnews.us/content/219943-unusual-conditions-pole-arctic-squad-s-reporthttp://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN179811820100517http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091014144729.htmhttp://www.catlinarcticsurvey.com/News.aspx?newsid=126