The Arctic may run out of ice within a decade

The latest images provided by satellites show that the thickness of the ice in the Arctic has dropped to its lowest level in history. Some US scientists warn that, in less than 10 years, the Earth's north pole will be free of ice.

The melting of the Arctic not only narrowed the habitat of the white bear, but also changed the climate throughout the planet.Photo: thelivingmoon.com.

The US Aeronautics Agency (NASA) said the ice surface area in the Arctic has decreased by 444,800 square kilometers from the average between 1979 and 2000. The thickness of the ice layers also dropped to the lowest level in history.

Walt Meier, an expert at the University of Colorado (USA), said that climate change caused ice to melt quickly in the last two decades. He predicted that the Arctic Ocean would no longer be ice during the period from 2020 to 2040. Even that scenario could happen in 2013.

"Most of us agree with the idea that the Arctic ice will disappear in the summer, the problem is when that happens. Climate temperature continues to increase with the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. "Even if we don't release CO ₂ , the global temperature will increase. The Arctic Ocean will continue to absorb heat, causing the ice to constantly melt , " he said.

Many studies based on computer models show that the north pole of the planet will run out of ice before 2037. The planet's southern pole does not escape that condition either. Satellite images show a giant ice bridge in Antarctica broken last week. This bridge helps to fix the position of an area half the size of Scotland.

According to Meier, the Arctic ice melted faster than the scientific forecasts for the greenhouse effect. That situation not only negatively affects polar bears, but also changes the climate around the world. The ice is capable of reflecting the sun's rays, causing the amount of heat absorbed by the ocean. When the ice somewhere in the ocean disappears, water absorbs more heat.

As a result, ice elsewhere continues to melt and the area of ​​the water is expanding. The melting of ice could also cause disputes among countries in exploiting resources such as oil and sea transport.