Marine Technology Reporter Blogs - images: wikapedia

An international team of scientists has produced the most accurate assessment of ice losses from Greenland and Antarctica. In a landmark study, published on 30 November in the journal Science, the researchers show that melting of the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets has contributed 11.1 millimeters to global sea levels since 1992. This amounts to one fifth of all sea-level-rise over the survey period (1992 – present day). Researchers from British Antarctic Survey and the University of Bristol describe how analysis of millions of NASA satellite measurements from both of these vast ice sheets shows that the most profound ice loss is a result of glaciers speeding up where they flow into the sea.

Researchers have found that even small increases in temperature can cause climatology shifts that are harmful to ocean life. A new paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science shows small changes in temperature have significantly altered trade wind intensity in the southern Caribbean. This process reduces the supply of phytoplankton, a key food source. The paper is the product of nearly 15 years of observations in a highly collaborative NSF-funded effort between researchers at USC, Stony Brook University, the University of South Florida and several Venezuelan institutions. Since late 1995, monthly observations of a range of variables…

Researchers have developed a new method that lets them draw on natural temperature records. In the past there have been difficulties in interpreting what the Earths ancient climate was like. Scientists have relied on measuring the Earths temperature and amount of water held in glaciers and ice caps. The new technique gives a much more detailed view of fluctuations during warm and cold periods in the climate. The Mid-Pleistocene is an important turning point in climate history. Between 1.25 million and 60,000 years ago the planets ice age cycle changed from 40,000 to 100,000 year cycles. This was due to recurrent changes in the planets orbit around the Sun. The changes were small changes, but little was known about what happened during this transition.