Snow and Ice on Planet Earth: Present State, Impacts and Projections
- Resumen
- Snow and ice on our planet includes mountain glaciers, ice shelves, continental ice sheets, seasonal snow, frozen ground, sea ice and freshwater ice that occur in polar regions and in high mountain zones. There is abundant and significant evidencethatmostofthesecryosphericcomponentsareundergoinga generalised reduction in response to global warming, with already detectable effects on the environment and on different human activities. The reduction includes a strong decrease of Artic sea ice, a decreasing snow cover at a global level, widespread glacier wastage, and the collapse of floating ice shelves in the Artic and the Antarctic, with associated flow acceleration and thinning of inland glaciers. The effects associated to cryosphere reduction include the modification of runoff patternsduetotheincreaseof glacier melt;theearlier occurrenceof springsnow melting; decrease of vehicle traffic on frozen Arctic roads; increased danger associated to glacier and slopeinstabilities due themechanicalweakeningof soils under deglaciation; changes in freshwater and marine ecosystems affected by lake, river and sea ice reduction; changes in Arctic and mountain livelihoods; reduced skiing, ice climbing and outdoor activities in mountain areas affected by deglaciation; and higher ship traffic in the Artic.
- Autor
- Casassa, Gino
- Palabras Clave
- Cambio climático, Nieve, Hielo, Glaciares, Nivel del mar
- Idioma
- Inglés
- Documentos
- Ponencia ( 12 pag, 624 Kb )
- Presentación