Download or read book International Coordination to Improve Studies of Changes in Arctic Sea Ice Cover written by and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Seasonal to Decadal Predictions of Arctic Sea Ice written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2013-01-03 with total page 93 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent well documented reductions in the thickness and extent of Arctic sea ice cover, which can be linked to the warming climate, are affecting the global climate system and are also affecting the global economic system as marine access to the Arctic region and natural resource development increase. Satellite data show that during each of the past six summers, sea ice cover has shrunk to its smallest in three decades. The composition of the ice is also changing, now containing a higher fraction of thin first-year ice instead of thicker multi-year ice. Understanding and projecting future sea ice conditions is important to a growing number of stakeholders, including local populations, natural resource industries, fishing communities, commercial shippers, marine tourism operators, national security organizations, regulatory agencies, and the scientific research community. However, gaps in understanding the interactions between Arctic sea ice, oceans, and the atmosphere, along with an increasing rate of change in the nature and quantity of sea ice, is hampering accurate predictions. Although modeling has steadily improved, projections by every major modeling group failed to predict the record breaking drop in summer sea ice extent in September 2012. Establishing sustained communication between the user, modeling, and observation communities could help reveal gaps in understanding, help balance the needs and expectations of different stakeholders, and ensure that resources are allocated to address the most pressing sea ice data needs. Seasonal-to-Decadal Predictions of Arctic Sea Ice: Challenges and Strategies explores these topics.

Download or read book Sea Ice written by David N. Thomas and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2009-11-06 with total page 641 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the Arctic perennial sea ice continues to disappear at an alarming rate, a full understanding of sea ice as a crucial global ecosystem, and the effects of its loss is vital for all those working with and studying global climate change. Building on the success of the previous edition, the second edition of Sea Ice, now much expanded and in full colour throughout, includes six completely new chapters with complete revisions of all the chapters included from the first edition. The Editors, Professor David Thomas and Dr Gerhard Dieckmann have once again drawn together an extremely impressive group of internationally respected contributing authors, ensuring a comprehensive worldwide coverage of this incredibly important topic. Sea Ice, second edition, is an essential purchase for oceanographers and marine scientists, environmental scientists, biologists, geochemists and geologists. All those involved in the study of global climate change will find this book to contain a wealth of important information. All libraries in universities and research establishments where these subjects are studied and taught will need multiple copies of this book on their shelves. truly multidisciplinary approach world leading authors and editors international in scope, covering both Arctic and Antarctic work of vital interest to all those involved in global warming and climate change research highly illustrated full colour book with colour images throughout

Download or read book Climate Change and Arctic Sustainable Development written by UNESCO and published by UNESCO. This book was released on 2009-01-01 with total page 373 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Arctic is undergoing rapid and dramatic environmental and social transformations due to climate change. This has ramifications for the entire planet, as change spreads through interconnected global networks that are environmental, cultural, economic and political. Today, with the major thrust of research shifting away from deciphering causes and monitoring trends, the central preoccupation of a growing circle of actors has become the exploration of strategies for responding and adapting to climate change. But to understand the far-reaching nature of climate change impacts and the complexities of adaptation, a truly interdisciplinary approach is required. Unique in the UN system, UNESCO brings together the domains of natural sciences, social sciences,culture, education and communication. Given this broad mandate, UNESCO favors integrated approaches for monitoring and adapting to climate change in the Arctic, fostering dialogue among scientists, circumpolar communities and decision-makers. This book brings together the knowledge, concerns and visions of leading Arctic scientists in the natural and social sciences, prominent Chukchi, Even, Inuit and Saami leaders from across the circumpolar North, and international experts in education, health and ethics. They highlight the urgent need for a sustained interdisciplinary and multi-actor approach to monitoring, managing and responding to climate change in the Arctic, and explore avenues by which this can be achieved.--Publisher's description.

Download or read book Arctic Matters written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2014-04-13 with total page 37 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Viewed in satellite images as a jagged white coat draped over the top of the globe, the high Arctic appears distant and isolated. But even if you don't live there, don't do business there, and will never travel there, you are closer to the Arctic than you think. Arctic Matters: The Global Connection to Changes in the Arctic is a new educational resource produced by the Polar Research Board of the National Research Council (NRC). It draws upon a large collection of peer-reviewed NRC reports and other national and international reports to provide a brief, reader-friendly primer on the complex ways in which the changes currently affecting the Arctic and its diverse people, resources, and environment can, in turn, affect the entire globe. Topics in the booklet include how climate changes currently underway in the Arctic are a driver for global sea-level rise, offer new prospects for natural resource extraction, and have rippling effects through the world's weather, climate, food supply and economy.

Download or read book Linkages Between Arctic Warming and Mid Latitude Weather Patterns written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2014-05-29 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Arctic has been undergoing significant changes in recent years. Average temperatures are rising twice as fast as they are elsewhere in the world. The extent and thickness of sea ice is rapidly declining. Such changes may have an impact on atmospheric conditions outside the region. Several hypotheses for how Arctic warming may be influencing mid-latitude weather patterns have been proposed recently. For example, Arctic warming could lead to a weakened jet stream resulting in more persistent weather patterns in the mid-latitudes. Or Arctic sea ice loss could lead to an increase of snow on high-latitude land, which in turn impacts the jet stream resulting in cold Eurasian and North American winters. These and other potential connections between a warming Arctic and mid-latitude weather are the subject of active research. Linkages Between Arctic Warming and Mid-Latitude Weather Patterns is the summary of a workshop convened in September 2013 by the National Research Council to review our current understanding and to discuss research needed to better understand proposed linkages. A diverse array of experts examined linkages between a warming Arctic and mid-latitude weather patterns. The workshop included presentations from leading researchers representing a range of views on this topic. The workshop was organized to allow participants to take a global perspective and consider the influence of the Arctic in the context of forcing from other components of the climate system, such as changes in the tropics, ocean circulation, and mid-latitude sea surface temperature. This report discusses our current understanding of the mechanisms that link declines in Arctic sea ice cover, loss of high-latitude snow cover, changes in Arctic-region energy fluxes, atmospheric circulation patterns, and the occurrence of extreme weather events; possible implications of more severe loss of summer Arctic sea ice upon weather patterns at lower latitudes; major gaps in our understanding, and observational and/or modeling efforts that are needed to fill those gaps; and current opportunities and limitations for using Arctic sea ice predictions to assess the risk of temperature/precipitation anomalies and extreme weather events over northern continents.

Download or read book International Study of Arctic Change written by Michael Tjernström and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The International Study of Arctic Change (ISAC) is an open-ended, international, interdisciplinary science program. The goal of ISAC is to provide scientific information on rapid arctic change to society and decision makers so they can respond with informed strategies. This requires observation and tracking of arctic changes and understanding their nature, causes, feedbacks and connections among them. ISAC encompasses pan-Arctic, system-scale, multidisciplinary observations, synthesis and modeling to provide an integrated understanding of arctic change and projections of future change. The ISAC Science Plan provides a vision for integrating research among diverse fields and varied users and stakeholders. ISAC facilitates international cooperative efforts to understand the Arctic System and all its components on a pan-Arctic scale. ISAC is positioned to sustain research and coordination activities relevant to environmental arctic change largely initiated during the International Polar Year (IPY). As an active science program ISAC stimulates and provides guidance to develop, maintain and evolve observational activities and scientific understanding. This approach ensures a legacy of relevant high-quality science in the Arctic for decades to come. ISAC is motivated by environmental changes that are already large enough to affect life in the Arctic. The changes illustrated in this document focus on the last decade noting shrinking sea ice cover, rising atmospheric temperature, thawing permafrost, shifts in ecosystems, and linkages to human systems. Substantial future changes are projected to have profound impacts on humankind. Ecosystems are changing, species distributions shifting, and wildlife populations and fisheries are experiencing extraordinary pressures - both natural and anthropogenic. Recent changes in the Arctic have already had significant impacts on infrastructure, on food security, on human health, and on industrial development, and they are influencing domestic responses and international relations. These changes can be measured in economic, social, political and cultural risks and costs and are reflected in human decision-making from the level of the individual to the nation-state, at the international scale, and in feedbacks to the system as a whole. Future system states are uncertain and the lack of predictability hinders efforts to develop strategies for adapting to and managing a changing Arctic. The following key science questions are prompted by observed changes and our current understanding of the Arctic System. Question 1. How is Arctic Change linked to global change? Question 2. How persistent is the presently observed arctic change and is it unique? Question 3. How large is the anthropogenic component of observed arctic change compared to natural variability? Question 4. Why are many aspects of arctic change amplified with respect to global conditions? Question 5. How well can arctic change be projected and what is needed to improve projections? Question 6. What are the adaptive capacities and resilience of arctic ecological systems? Question 7. To what extent are social and ecological systems able to adapt to the effects of arctic change? Question 8. How does environmental change in the Arctic affect the resilience, adaptive capacity, and ultimately, viability of human communities? Question 9. How can new insight into arctic change and its impacts be translated into solutions for adaptation, management, and mitigation? The ISAC science program is structured around three concepts: Observing, Understanding and Responding to arctic change. All the components of the Arctic System must be observed across time and space to understand the scope and evolution of change. Understanding how the system functions and projecting future changes requires models using data that flow from the comprehensive arctic observing system. Moving beyond description to understanding change in the past, present, and future is critical. In the integrated ISAC program the observing, understanding and responding components have been developed in concert around a set of objectives. These are: -Observing the Arctic System covering all domains including the anthroposphere, the atmosphere, the biosphere, the cryosphere, and the hydrosphere. This is based on existing and new long-term observing sites and networks as well as new observing methods. (observing); -Quantifying the anthropogenically-driven component of arctic change within the context of natural variability. (observing); -Understanding the causes of pan-Arctic changes, including changes in the human component, in the context of global change. (understanding); -Improving models to project future changes in the Arctic System, including impact assessment models for responding to change. (understanding); -Exploring options for adaptation to and mitigation of arctic change and suggesting ways that will lead to a path of sustainable use and development. (responding); -Disseminating data and results from ISAC activities to the scientific community, stakeholders and the general public (cross-cuts observing, understanding, responding); Implementation of ISAC is underway, with activities designed to collect specific information relevant to addressing ISAC science questions. Among numerous programs endorsed by IPY and that have contributed to ISAC are the recently sunsetted European Commission funded DAMOCLES Integrated Project (www.damocles-eu.org), and the ongoing United States Inter-agency SEARCH Program (www. arcus.org/search/index.php). These two initiatives were formally linked through the EU/US SEARCH FOR DAMOCLES initiative (www.arcus. org/search/internationalsearch/ damocles.php). They provide an example of how partnerships within ISAC may work. Partnerships within ISAC continue to expand and program building activities are planned in concert with participating programs. An integrated observing system that is designed for pan-Arctic coverage is being developed, with much progress on this initiative made during the International Polar Year. This evolving observing system will constitute the ISAC Observing component; it will ultimately cover the atmosphere, ocean and sea ice, hydrology, cyrosphere, marine and terrestrial ecosystems, and aspects of the human dimensions of the Arctic System. The data flow within each of the ISAC program elements is coordinated by dedicated data information systems following standard data policies operated by participating organizations, programs and projects. Efforts are underway within the ISAC Program Office to coordinate the data management functions among these program elements. Development of the ISAC Understanding component is also underway as modeling is increasingly coordinated among operational ISAC program elements. These activities include model comparisons, as well as coordination of new modeling initiatives, and in the longer-term, expansion of these activities to specifically address societal needs for understanding. The Responding to Change component of ISAC drives the program with an emphasis on societally relevant science. Implementation of the Responding to Change piece began with planning efforts during the IPY, and is one of the major foci for the near future activities of ISAC"--Page iv.

Download or read book Arctic Sea Ice Decline written by Eric T. DeWeaver and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2013-05-28 with total page 431 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Geophysical Monograph Series, Volume 180. This volume addresses the rapid decline of Arctic sea ice, placing recent sea ice decline in the context of past observations, climate model simulations and projections, and simple models of the climate sensitivity of sea ice. Highlights of the work presented here include An appraisal of the role played by wind forcing in driving the decline; A reconstruction of Arctic sea ice conditions prior to human observations, based on proxy data from sediments; A modeling approach for assessing the impact of sea ice decline on polar bears, used as input to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's decision to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act; Contrasting studies on the existence of a "tipping point," beyond which Arctic sea ice decline will become (or has already become) irreversible, including an examination of the role of the small ice cap instability in global warming simulations; A significant summertime atmospheric response to sea ice reduction in an atmospheric general circulation model, suggesting a positive feedback and the potential for short-term climate prediction. The book will be of interest to researchers attempting to understand the recent behavior of Arctic sea ice, model projections of future sea ice loss, and the consequences of sea ice loss for the natural and human systems of the Arctic.

Download or read book Influence of Climate Change on the Changing Arctic and Sub Arctic Conditions written by Jacques Nihoul and published by Springer. This book was released on 2009-01-25 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The current warming trends in the Arctic may shove the Arctic system into a seasonally ice-free state not seen for more than one million years. The melting is accelerating, and researchers were unable to identify natural processes that might slow the deicing of the Arctic. Such substantial additional melting of Arctic and Antarctic glaciers and ice sheets would raise the sea level worldwide, flooding the coastal areas where many of the world's population lives. Studies, led by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Arizona, show that greenhouse gas increases over the next century could warm the Arctic by 3-5°C in summertime. Thus, Arctic summers by 2100 may be as warm as they were nearly 130,000 years ago, when sea levels eventually rose up to 6 m higher than today.

Download or read book The Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate written by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2022-04-30 with total page 755 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the leading international body for assessing the science related to climate change. It provides policymakers with regular assessments of the scientific basis of human-induced climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation. This IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate is the most comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the observed and projected changes to the ocean and cryosphere and their associated impacts and risks, with a focus on resilience, risk management response options, and adaptation measures, considering both their potential and limitations. It brings together knowledge on physical and biogeochemical changes, the interplay with ecosystem changes, and the implications for human communities. It serves policymakers, decision makers, stakeholders, and all interested parties with unbiased, up-to-date, policy-relevant information. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Download or read book Arctic Science International Law and Climate Change written by Susanne Wasum-Rainer and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-06-14 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Developments in the Arctic region are increasingly part of international discussion. The book contains a comprehensive and interdisciplinary analysis of the current problems around marine scientific research in the Arctic region. It combines scientific, legal and policy aspects. The main questions addressed are: ongoing and future Arctic marine research, marine research in the Arctic Ocean in practice, the legal framework, enlarged continental shelves and the freedom of marine science and particularities and challenges of the Arctic region. The contributors are leading experts in the field of politics, law and science.

Download or read book The Arctic in the Anthropocene written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2014-07-31 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Once ice-bound, difficult to access, and largely ignored by the rest of the world, the Arctic is now front and center in the midst of many important questions facing the world today. Our daily weather, what we eat, and coastal flooding are all interconnected with the future of the Arctic. The year 2012 was an astounding year for Arctic change. The summer sea ice volume smashed previous records, losing approximately 75 percent of its value since 1980 and half of its areal coverage. Multiple records were also broken when 97 percent of Greenland's surface experienced melt conditions in 2012, the largest melt extent in the satellite era. Receding ice caps in Arctic Canada are now exposing land surfaces that have been continuously ice covered for more than 40,000 years. What happens in the Arctic has far-reaching implications around the world. Loss of snow and ice exacerbates climate change and is the largest contributor to expected global sea level rise during the next century. Ten percent of the world's fish catches comes from Arctic and sub-Arctic waters. The U.S. Geological Survey estimated that up to 13 percent of the world's remaining oil reserves are in the Arctic. The geologic history of the Arctic may hold vital clues about massive volcanic eruptions and the consequent release of massive amount of coal fly ash that is thought to have caused mass extinctions in the distant past. How will these changes affect the rest of Earth? What research should we invest in to best understand this previously hidden land, manage impacts of change on Arctic communities, and cooperate with researchers from other nations? The Arctic in the Anthropocene reviews research questions previously identified by Arctic researchers, and then highlights the new questions that have emerged in the wake of and expectation of further rapid Arctic change, as well as new capabilities to address them. This report is meant to guide future directions in U.S. Arctic research so that research is targeted on critical scientific and societal questions and conducted as effectively as possible. The Arctic in the Anthropocene identifies both a disciplinary and a cross-cutting research strategy for the next 10 to 20 years, and evaluates infrastructure needs and collaboration opportunities. The climate, biology, and society in the Arctic are changing in rapid, complex, and interactive ways. Understanding the Arctic system has never been more critical; thus, Arctic research has never been more important. This report will be a resource for institutions, funders, policy makers, and students. Written in an engaging style, The Arctic in the Anthropocene paints a picture of one of the last unknown places on this planet, and communicates the excitement and importance of the discoveries and challenges that lie ahead.

Download or read book Changes in the Arctic written by Ronald O'Rourke and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2012-04-28 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The diminishment of Arctic sea ice has led to increased human activities in the Arctic, and has heightened concerns about the region's future. The United States, by virtue of Alaska, is an Arctic country and has substantial interests in the region. On January 12, 2009, the George W. Bush Administration released a presidential directive, called National Security Presidential Directive 66/Homeland Security Presidential Directive 25 (NSPD 66/HSPD 25), establishing a new U.S. policy for the Arctic region. Record low extent of Arctic sea ice in 2007 focused scientific and policy attention on its linkage to global climate change, and to the implications of projected ice-free seasons in the Arctic within decades. The Arctic has been projected by several scientists to be perennially ice-free in the late summer by the late 2030s. The five Arctic coastal states-the United States, Canada, Russia, Norway, and Denmark (of which Greenland is a territory)-are in the process of preparing Arctic territorial claims for submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. The Russian claim to the enormous underwater Lomonosov Ridge, if accepted, would reportedly grant Russia nearly one half of the Arctic area. There are also four other unresolved Arctic territorial disputes. The diminishment of Arctic ice could lead in the coming years to increased commercial shipping on two trans-Arctic sea routes. Current international guidelines for ships operating in Arctic waters are being updated, with a targeted completion date of 2010. Changes to the Arctic brought about by warming temperatures will likely allow more exploration for oil, gas, and minerals. Warming that causes permafrost to melt could pose challenges to onshore exploration activities. Increased oil and gas exploration and tourism (cruise ships) in the Arctic increase the risk of pollution in the region. Cleaning up oil spills in ice-covered waters will be more difficult than in other areas, primarily because effective strategies have yet to be developed. Large commercial fisheries exist in the Arctic. The United States is currently meeting with other countries regarding the management of Arctic fish stocks. Changes in the Arctic could affect threatened and endangered species. Under the Endangered Species Act, the polar bear was listed as threatened on May 15, 2008. Arctic climate change is also expected to affect the economies, subsistence, health, population, societies, and cultures of Arctic indigenous peoples. Two of the Coast Guard's three polar icebreakers-Polar Star and Polar Sea-have exceeded their intended 30-year service lives. The Coast Guard since 2008 has been studying how many polar icebreakers, with what capabilities, should be procured as replacements for Polar Star and Polar Sea. The possibility of increased sea traffic through Arctic waters also raises an issue concerning Arctic search and rescue capabilities. The Arctic has increasingly become a subject of discussion among political leaders of the nations in the region. Although there is significant international cooperation on Arctic issues, the Arctic is also increasingly being viewed by some observers as a potential emerging security issue. In varying degrees, the Arctic coastal states have indicated a willingness to establish and maintain a military presence in the high north. U.S. military forces, particularly the Navy and Coast Guard, have begun to pay more attention to the region.

Download or read book The Changing Arctic written by United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Antarctic Sea Ice Variability in the Southern Ocean Climate System written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2017-03-24 with total page 83 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The sea ice surrounding Antarctica has increased in extent and concentration from the late 1970s, when satellite-based measurements began, until 2015. Although this increasing trend is modest, it is surprising given the overall warming of the global climate and the region. Indeed, climate models, which incorporate our best understanding of the processes affecting the region, generally simulate a decrease in sea ice. Moreover, sea ice in the Arctic has exhibited pronounced declines over the same period, consistent with global climate model simulations. For these reasons, the behavior of Antarctic sea ice has presented a conundrum for global climate change science. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine held a workshop in January 2016, to bring together scientists with different sets of expertise and perspectives to further explore potential mechanisms driving the evolution of recent Antarctic sea ice variability and to discuss ways to advance understanding of Antarctic sea ice and its relationship to the broader ocean-climate system. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

Download or read book Polar Ice and Global Warming in Cryosphere Regions written by Neloy Khare and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2024-03-21 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Polar Ice and Global Warming in Cryosphere Regions is based on recent and past climate variabilities data gathered through satellites and spatial-temporal analysis to explain the role of global warming on cryosphere regions such as high-latitude Himalaya, Arctic and Antarctic regions, and the surrounding Southern Ocean and Arctic Ocean. Through several case studies the book describes the atmospheric processes and their interactions with high-latitude regions toward a better understanding of climate variability. Understanding cryosphere regions helps readers develop plausible models for disaster risk management and policy on different polar events. Features Presents a thorough review on climate variability over the Southern Ocean and Antarctica, and the impact of climate variability and global warming on cryosphere regions Explains how the inferred climatological environmental conditions using natural archives may shed light on climate scenarios in cryosphere regions Includes case studies on globally connected geoscientific phenomena in the Himalayan, Arctic, and Antarctic regions Discusses the use of natural archives to explain the current climate scenario in the cryosphere regions Intended for researchers, academics, and graduate students following oceanography, meteorology, or environmental studies, and those working on projects related to climate change in governmental organizations, institutions, and global NGOs, this book outlines ways in which readers can initiate plans and policies to help mitigate the effects of global warming in these regions.

Download or read book Arctic and Environmental Change written by J.A. Dowdeswell and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-09-17 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This timely book presents a wide-ranging review of Arctic environmental change in response to global warming, and gives a broad insight into the transformation of the Arctic which we can expect during the next century. It is in high northern latitudes that we can expect to observe global warming at its most powerful, making it a natural laboratory where climate changes and their impacts can be monitored and studied more readily than elsewhere in the world. Fourteen authoritative reviews cover the predictions of warming rates by General Circulation Models; variabilities in atmospheric circulation and moisture flux; the dynamics of the polar vortex in the Arctic and its role in ozone loss; the countervailing influence of air pollution in reducing solar irradiance; and the impact of climatic change on Arctic terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Also detailed are the thermohaline circulation of the ocean, the extent and thickness of sea ice, the sizes of glaciers and ice sheets, and the extent of permafrost. Moving to past changes, the records from Greenland ice cores and deep ocean drilling are reviewed for what they tell us about past climates and glaciation in the Arctic., The book paints a vivid and disturbing picture of the enhanced warming that can be expected in the Arctic relative to lower latitudes, and of the major impacts that this will have on the northern cryosphere. It will be an invaluable reference for anyone seeking a greater understanding of the factors and processes affecting the arctic environment, which may ultimately have a major impact on global climatic change.