Climate breakdown is occurring faster than most scientists expected, and certainly is *far* ahead of official projections from the IPCC.
One reason for that could be increased levels of methane in our atmosphere. Methane (CH4), as you may know, is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide (CO2), though its effects do not last as long, only about 20 years. But during that time, methane increases heating with up to 25 times more vigor. So it's extremely dangerous.
And the more closely scientists look, the more sources of methane they seem to find...
____________________________
As the Arctic warms, shrinking glaciers are exposing bubbling groundwater springs which could provide an underestimated source of the potent greenhouse gas methane, finds new research published in Nature Geoscience.
The study, led by researchers from the University of Cambridge and the University Center in Svalbard, Norway, identified large stocks of methane gas leaking from groundwater springs unveiled by melting glaciers.
The research suggests that these methane emissions will likely increase as Arctic glaciers retreat and more springs are exposed. This, and other methane emissions from melting ice and frozen ground in the Arctic, could exacerbate global warming.
"These springs are a considerable, and potentially growing, source of methane emissions — one that has been missing from our estimations of the global methane budget until now," said Gabrielle Kleber, lead author of the research who is from Cambridge's Department of Earth Sciences.
Scientists are concerned that additional methane emissions released by the Arctic thaw could ramp-up human-induced global warming. The springs the researchers studied hadn't previously been recognized as a potential source of methane emissions.
____________________________
FULL ARTICLE -- https://phys.org/news/2023-07-arctic-glaciers-unearthing-source-methane.html
#Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #ClimateEmergency
Bread and Circuses /
npub1ej…qh8ya
2023-07-07 13:28:43
Author Public Key
npub1ejy6zuevge09258k79qc2exy9l3gafu02thsfj7pfgf3c67q6peqvqh8yaPublished at
2023-07-07 13:28:43Event JSON
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"content": "Climate breakdown is occurring faster than most scientists expected, and certainly is *far* ahead of official projections from the IPCC. \n\nOne reason for that could be increased levels of methane in our atmosphere. Methane (CH4), as you may know, is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide (CO2), though its effects do not last as long, only about 20 years. But during that time, methane increases heating with up to 25 times more vigor. So it's extremely dangerous.\n\nAnd the more closely scientists look, the more sources of methane they seem to find...\n____________________________\n\nAs the Arctic warms, shrinking glaciers are exposing bubbling groundwater springs which could provide an underestimated source of the potent greenhouse gas methane, finds new research published in Nature Geoscience.\n\nThe study, led by researchers from the University of Cambridge and the University Center in Svalbard, Norway, identified large stocks of methane gas leaking from groundwater springs unveiled by melting glaciers.\n\nThe research suggests that these methane emissions will likely increase as Arctic glaciers retreat and more springs are exposed. This, and other methane emissions from melting ice and frozen ground in the Arctic, could exacerbate global warming.\n\n\"These springs are a considerable, and potentially growing, source of methane emissions — one that has been missing from our estimations of the global methane budget until now,\" said Gabrielle Kleber, lead author of the research who is from Cambridge's Department of Earth Sciences.\n\nScientists are concerned that additional methane emissions released by the Arctic thaw could ramp-up human-induced global warming. The springs the researchers studied hadn't previously been recognized as a potential source of methane emissions.\n____________________________\n\nFULL ARTICLE -- https://phys.org/news/2023-07-arctic-glaciers-unearthing-source-methane.html\n\n#Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #ClimateEmergency",
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