Climate change | The two poles in the front row

In 2021, climate change continued to profoundly modify the two Earth’s poles. While an expected report confirms that major changes are underway in the Arctic, scientists are worried about the rapid transformations that may alter the Antarctic continent. Big plan.

Eric-Pierre Champagne
Press

Dramatic transformations in the Arctic

A report released Tuesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) illustrates how quickly the Arctic is changing due to climate change. The document entitled Arctic Report Card 2021 takes stock of many indicators considered to be “vital signs” for this region, which is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world. ” The bulletin Arctic report card of this year continues to show how the impacts of man-made climate change are propelling the Arctic region into a state radically different from what it was just a few decades ago, ”said the administrator of the US agency. , Rick Spinrad, at a press conference.

More and more hot

The period from October 2020 to September 2021 was the seventh warmest in the Arctic since 1900, when the first surveys were carried out. This rise in temperatures has of course many consequences in the region. On June 30, 2021, a record heat was recorded at the weather station in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, with 39.9 ℃. Note that the UN validated on Tuesday another record dating from June 20, 2020 in the Russian city of Verkhoïansk, where the mercury climbed to 38 ℃. One of the most visible manifestations of this warming is the greening of the tundra, which is more pronounced in Alaska and the Canadian Far North.

Ice volume decreases

At the end of winter 2021, the volume of ice in the Arctic was the lowest recorded since 2010, continuing the trend observed for several years. Rain in Greenland was also observed during the month of August, a phenomenon that is likely to repeat itself over the next few years, accelerating the melting of the ice and snow cover. If the region’s ecosystems are the first to be affected by this warming, cities further south will inevitably be victims of the rise in sea level in the more or less near future. “This rise in the level of the oceans will have impacts on billions of people,” recalls Lawrence Mudryk, researcher at Environment Canada.

Alarming trends

Why do we need to be concerned about what is happening in the Arctic? “The trends are alarming and undeniable. We are facing a watershed moment, ”said NOAA boss Rick Spinrad. “We must take action to deal with the climate crisis. According to Lawrence Mudryk, this region kind of shows us what will happen in other regions of the world. “Climate change has already changed the Arctic. It won’t be the same further south, the changes will be different, but it will happen. What I want to remind people is that every degree less, every portion of a degree more that we avoid will be welcome. ”

Concerns in Antarctica

At the other end of the globe, scientists fear that the Thwaites Glacier will separate from the Antarctic continent within ten years, or even three to five years. On its own, this glacier – as large as the UK – has the potential to cause ocean levels to rise a few feet. Such an event could also have important consequences on the rest of the continent, since this glacier serves as a support for part of Antarctica, explained glaciologist Erin Pettit in a conference held this week at the Congress of the American Geophysical Union. . In this part of the world, the slightest change now risks triggering a series of chain reactions that could be felt anywhere on the planet.