How openings in Antarctic sea ice affect worldwide climate

In 1974, images acquired from NOAA satellites revealed a puzzling phenomenon: a 250,000 square kilometer opening in the winter sea ice in the Weddell Sea, south of South America. The opening, known as a polynya, persisted ...

Deconstructing a mystery: What caused Snowmaggedon?

In the quiet after the storms, streets and cars had all but disappeared under piles of snow. The U.S. Postal Service suspended service for the first time in 30 years. Snow plows struggled to push the evidence off of major ...

Arctic sea ice loss leads to more frequent strong El Niño events

Over the last 40 years, a rapid shrinking of Arctic sea ice has been one of the most significant indicators of climate change. The amount of sea ice that survives the Arctic summer has declined 13% per decade since the late ...

Tropical clouds hold clues for the global water cycle

(PhysOrg.com) -- To study the wellspring of atmospheric water, you have to start with tropical clouds. Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory showed that global climate models are not accurately depicting the ...

Stronger winds explain puzzling growth of sea ice in Antarctica

(Phys.org) —Much attention is paid to melting sea ice in the Arctic. But less clear is the situation on the other side of the planet. Despite warmer air and oceans, there's more sea ice in Antarctica now than in the 1970s ...

Satellites may have underestimated warming in the lower atmosphere

New research by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) climate scientists and collaborators shows that satellite measurements of the temperature of the troposphere (the lowest region of the atmosphere) may have underestimated ...

Climate change will drive stronger, smaller storms in US

The effects of climate change will likely cause smaller but stronger storms in the United States, according to a new framework for modeling storm behavior developed at the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory. ...

Southwest may face 'megadrought' within century, study finds

(Phys.org) —Due to global warming, scientists say, the chances of the southwestern United States experiencing a decadelong drought is at least 50 percent, and the chances of a "megadrought" – one that lasts up to 35 years ...

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