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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Arctic ice melts to lowest point in recent history
OTTAWA -- Arctic ice cover has reached another nadir, melting to its lowest point in recent history.
Scientists say the summer thaw climaxed on Wednesday and now will begin to turn with the coming of colder weather. But the speed and extent of the melt this year has prompted them to revisit their projections for ice-free summers and for global warming more generally.
"It didn't just beat the 2007 minimum, it beat it by a whole lot," said Julienne Stroeve, a scientist from the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Centre.
She was aboard a Greenpeace ship in the Arctic Ocean north of Greenland on a trip to observe first-hand the melting of the ice that she has studied mainly through satellite data.
She and other scientists say they were taken by surprise by the pace of the melt this year. An area of sea ice bigger than the province of Alberta disappeared over the summer -- clobbering previous records and prompting concerns about the effects on climate change.
In mid-September, Arctic ice covered 3.41 million square kilometres, down dramatically from the previous low in 2007, when it measured 4.17 million square kilometres, Stroeve's agency reported.
-- The Canadian Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 20, 2012 A9
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Saskatchewan premier no longer believes Senate can be reformed
3:13 PM 0SASKATOON - Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall says it's time for the Senate to go.
Wall has been a supporter of Senate ...
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