The amount of sea ice in Antarctica has dropped to its lowest level since 1980 as the winter season begins, local New Zealand media reported.
New Zealand scientists told the New Zealand-Australia Antarctic Science Conference in Christchurch on Monday that the decline in the amount of sea ice floating in Antarctic waters is worse than the worst case scenario scientists had anticipated, with about 20% less sea ice than in any year since 1980, 1News and other local media reported.
Professor Tim Naish, a climate scientist at Victoria University of New Zealand, explained that Antarctic sea ice hasn’t formed to the extent seen in a normal winter, which is abnormal.
Dr. Richard Levy of New Zealand’s Geological and Nuclear Sciences Institute (GNS) warned that the planet is losing an important shield in the fight against climate change, noting that sea ice reflects the sun’s rays, cooling the planet.
He added that as icebergs in Antarctica melt and fall into the ocean, 카지노사이트넷 they will have a major impact on sea level rise.