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Read science articles on the ice age, glaciation and climatology. Discover the connection between ice ages and global warming.
Updated: 2 hours 11 min ago

Deep insights into the Arctic of tomorrow

Mon, 02/07/2022 - 07:35
Hundreds of international researchers are currently analyzing observations from the one-year MOSAiC expedition, during which hundreds of environmental parameters were recorded with unprecedented accuracy and frequency over a full annual cycle in the Central Arctic Ocean.

Study looks at glacial lakes, dams in Alaska and potential for flooding

Fri, 02/04/2022 - 08:31
Researchers have produced a detailed inventory of glacial lakes and dams over a 35-year timeframe from 1984 to 2019 in Alaska and northwest Canada.

Human-induced climate change impacts the highest reaches of the planet — Mount Everest

Thu, 02/03/2022 - 07:35
Melting and sublimation on Mount Everest's highest glacier due to human-induced climate change have reached the point that several decades of accumulation are being lost annually now that ice has been exposed, according to a research team that analyzed data from the world's highest ice core and highest automatic weather stations.

Ocean eddies could explain Antarctic sea-ice paradox

Wed, 02/02/2022 - 07:03
Despite global warming and the sea-ice loss in the Arctic, the Antarctic sea-ice extent has remained largely unchanged since 1979. However, existing climate model-based simulations indicate significant sea-ice loss, contrary to actual observations. As experts have now shown, the ocean may weaken warming around Antarctica and delay sea-ice retreat.

Widespread retreat and loss of marine-terminating glaciers in the northern hemisphere

Mon, 01/31/2022 - 12:28
Researchers have mapped out all the glaciers that end in the ocean in the Northern Hemisphere and provide a measure of their rate of change over the last 20 years. Their findings will help us better understand -- and perhaps predict -- the impact of climate change north of the equator.

Thawing permafrost can accelerate global warming

Fri, 01/28/2022 - 09:07
Thawing permafrost in the Arctic could be emitting greenhouse gases from previously unaccounted-for carbon stocks, fuelling global warming. In the Siberian Arctic, the research team determined the origin of carbon dioxide released from permafrost that is thousands of years old.

Climate change in the Early Holocene

Thu, 01/27/2022 - 10:43
New insight into how our early ancestors dealt with major shifts in climate has been revealed.

Ancient ice reveals mysterious solar storm

Wed, 01/26/2022 - 13:42
Through analysis of ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica, a research team has found evidence of an extreme solar storm that occurred about 9,200 years ago. What puzzles the researchers is that the storm took place during one of the sun's more quiet phases -- during which it is generally believed our planet is less exposed to such events.

Updrafts crucial: Clouds in the southern hemisphere more precisely understood

Wed, 01/26/2022 - 13:41
Clouds in the southern hemisphere reflect more sunlight than those in the northern hemisphere. The reason is a more frequent occurrence of liquid water droplets, which results from an interplay between updrafts and a cleaner environment.

Bubbles of methane rising from seafloor in Puget Sound

Wed, 01/19/2022 - 12:50
The release of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas responsible for almost a quarter of global warming, is being studied around the world, from Arctic wetlands to livestock feedlots. A team has discovered a source much closer to home: 349 plumes of methane gas bubbling up from the seafloor in Puget Sound, which holds more water than any other U.S. estuary.

Rivers speeding up Arctic ice melt at alarming rate

Tue, 01/18/2022 - 09:41
Freshwater flowing into the Arctic Ocean from the continent is thought to exacerbate Arctic amplification, but the extent of its impact isn't fully understood. New research measures how the flow of the Yenisei River -- the largest freshwater river that flows into the Arctic Ocean -- has changed over the last few hundred years, and describes the impact freshwater has had on the Arctic.

Past eight years: Warmest since modern recordkeeping began

Thu, 01/13/2022 - 22:01
Earth's global average surface temperature in 2021 tied with 2018 as the sixth warmest on record, according to independent analyses done by NASA and NOAA. Collectively, the past eight years are the warmest years since modern recordkeeping began in 1880.

World's largest fish breeding area discovered in Antarctica

Thu, 01/13/2022 - 10:14
Near the Filchner Ice Shelf in the south of the Antarctic Weddell Sea, a research team has found the world's largest fish breeding area known to date. A towed camera system photographed and filmed thousands of nests of icefish of the species Neopagetopsis ionah on the seabed.

Ancient Mesopotamian discovery transforms knowledge of early farming

Tue, 01/11/2022 - 14:37
Researchers have unearthed the earliest definitive evidence of broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum) in ancient Iraq, challenging our understanding of humanity's earliest agricultural practices.

Arctic coasts in transition

Tue, 01/11/2022 - 10:19
Arctic coasts are characterized by sea ice, permafrost and ground ice. This makes them particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, which is already accelerating rapid coastal erosion.

Low oxygen and sulfide in the oceans played greater role in ancient mass extinction

Mon, 01/10/2022 - 17:48
Researchers have new insight into the complicated puzzle of environmental conditions that characterized the Late Ordovician Mass Extinction (LOME), which killed about 85% of the species in the ocean.

Recent growth and sudden declines in Antarctic sea ice to be unique changes since the early 20th century

Mon, 01/10/2022 - 10:41
Researchers show that the increase of sea ice surrounding Antarctica since 1979 is a unique feature of Antarctic climate since 1905 -- an observation that paints a dramatic first-ever picture for weather and climate implications on the world's southernmost continent.

Tipping point in Humboldt Current off Peru leads to species shift

Fri, 01/07/2022 - 11:14
Fundamental changes in the ocean, such as warming, acidification or oxygen depletion, may have significant consequences for the composition of fish stocks, including the displacement of individual species. Researchers have reconstructed environmental conditions of the warm period 125,000 years ago (Eemian interglacial) using sediment samples from the Humboldt Current System off Peru. They were able to show that, at warmer temperatures, mainly smaller, goby-like fish species became dominant and pushed back important food fish such as the anchovy (Engraulis ringens). The trend is independent of fishing pressure and fisheries management.

Ancient Maya lessons on surviving drought

Wed, 01/05/2022 - 08:45
A new study casts doubt on drought as the driver of ancient Mayan civilization collapse.

Geneticists’ new research on ancient Britain contains insights on language, ancestry, kinship, milk

Wed, 12/22/2021 - 14:31
New research revealing a major migration to the island of Great Britain offers fresh insights into the languages spoken at the time, the ancestry of present-day England and Wales, and even ancient habits of dairy consumption.

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