Arctic sea ice melt 'may bring harsh winter to Europe'

Source: Guardian

The record loss of Arctic sea ice this summer may mean a cold winter for the UK and northern Europe. The region has been prone to bad winters after summers with very low sea ice, such as 2011 and 2007, said Jennifer Francis, a researcher at Rutgers University.

The unprecedented expanse of ice-free Arctic Ocean has been absorbing the 24-hour sun over the short polar summer. The heat in the water must be released into the atmosphere if the ice is to re-form this autumn. "This is like a new energy source for the atmosphere," said Francis.

This heat and water vapour will affect the all-important jet stream – the west-to-east winds that are the boundary between cold Arctic and the warm mid-latitudes. Others researchers have already shown that the jet stream has been shifting northwards in recent years. Francis and colleagues have recently documented that the jet stream is also slowing down.

As the sea ice continues to decline, the jet stream will likely continue to slow more, and shift further north "bringing wild temperature swings and greater numbers of extreme events" in the future he said. "We're in uncharted territory."

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/sep/14/arctic-sea-ice-harsh-winter-europe?intcmp=122

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Some more at the link.

Wait for the seasonal 'Global warming is a myth because there's a snowstorm outside my window.' Because reality is just way to complex for a lot of people. Looking forward to another round of north-Norwegian conditions in middle Denmark with 40" of snow and -18°C for months (like two years ago, when the barents sea north of Norway was ice free) in a region that never used to get much snow... or even sub zero temperatures.