Arctic Heat Wave Threatens Greenland
My plan this week was to write a blog post about something quite different, but then I came across this one minute segment on the Weather Channel. (July 29). “Heat Wave That Baked Europe Heads North To Greenland” The graphic at the top is quite stark. The video warns of possible extreme melting of the Greenland ice sheet this week.
I can’t seem to leave Greenland alone, nor does it leave me alone. Greenland is an enigma; it’s hard to appreciate its scale. If it all melts, global sea level will be 24 feet – 7 meters – higher. While that will take centuries, the very real question is how much of it can melt in the coming decades. Greenland is the ‘canary in the coal mine’ for sea level rise.
A few days earlier the south Florida newspaper consortium working together on “the Invading Sea” series asked me to write another Op-Ed. My angle was the Greenland connection, pointing out that the future of South Florida — and all coastal communities worldwide — largely depends on what happens in Greenland. The title was: “As the planet gets hotter, South Floridians need to pay attention to Greenland’s melting ice”
It’s important to remember that the Arctic warms a lot faster than the global average that we tend to hear about. Most people are becoming aware that the world has warmed one degree Celsius – 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit. But in the high north, the warming is double or triple the global average. This causes massive melting of the ice sheet; and the rate is accelerating.
Most years I take a small group of leaders to Greenland to grasp the scale and how it will change the world. This week I am finalizing plans for this year’s trip in September. (www.greenland2019.johnenglander.net ) For those that can’t go, I will be reporting back here.
Keep an eye on Greenland; it’s coming to a coastal area near you…
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]