Temperatures Skyrocket in Arctic, Prompt Desperate ‘Refreeze’ Plan

Temperature readings near the North Pole soared to 50 degrees F above average on Friday, as a storm pushed warm air into the Arctic region.

This is the third such worryingly warm period this winter and sea ice figures released last week show the lowest January ice extent in satellite record—nearly 500,000 square miles below average.

The situation in the region is so alarming that a team of scientists from Arizona State University have published a plan to “refreeze” the Arctic in the American Geophysical Union’s journal Earth’s Future. The fact that the $500 billion plan, which would use millions of wind pumps to circulate colder water to the surface of the ice, is even being discussed “reveals just how desperately worried researchers have become about the Arctic,” reported the Guardian.

NOAA: 'Arctic Warming at Least Twice as Fast as the Rest of the Planet' https://t.co/pBLFPR8W45 @MichaelEMann @YaleClimateComm

— EcoWatch (@EcoWatch) December 14, 2016

For a deeper dive:

Temperatures: Washington Post, Mashable, Christian Science Monitor

Refreeze: The Guardian

Background: Climate Signals

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