Shocking photo shows sled dogs running through sea ice melt
@SteffenMalskaer got the difficult task of retrieving our oceanographic moorings and weather station on sea ice in North West Greenland this year. Rapid melt and sea ice with low permeability and few cracks leaves the melt water on top. pic.twitter.com/ytlBDTrVeD
— Rasmus Tonboe (@RasmusTonboe) June 14, 2019
An image tweeted by a Danish researcher this week reveals a startling example of the current effects of climate change.
The photo was taken by Steffen M. Olsen with the Centre of Ocean and Ice at the Danish Meteorological Institute, and posted by a colleague. It shows sled dogs wading through blue water of what would normally be a stretch of flat, white sea ice.
Olsen was tasked last week with recovering research equipment from sea ice in North West Greenland. But the fjord where the equipment was located appeared to look more like a river, with water levels reaching just past the sled dogs’ paws.
The station in the Inglefield Gulf usually sits on top of sea ice but melt season has started early this year. The country’s melt season usually begins in June and runs until August.
In May, scientists announced the start of the melt season in Greenland, which is the second earliest on record stretching back to 1980.
Communities in #Greenland rely on the sea ice for transport, hunting and fishing. Extreme events, here flooding of the ice by abrupt onset of surface melt call for an incresed predictive capacity in the Arctic @BG10Blueaction @polarprediction @dmidk https://t.co/Y1EWU1eurA
— Steffen M. Olsen (@SteffenMalskaer) June 14, 2019
In the tweet that originally posted the photo, Olsen’s colleague Rasmus Tonboe explained that “rapid melt and sea ice with low permeability and few cracks leaves the melt water on top.” Olsen said online that while the photo was evidence of an “unusual day” the snap was “more symbolic than scientific to many.” He added in a tweet that the team had managed to recover the remaining instruments from the research station, and will now focus on data recovery.
The stunning photo quickly drew a lot of reaction.
One of the most impactful climate change images I’ve seen in a long time. It’s genuinely becoming a different planet. Breaks my heart.
— Mauricio Bermudez (@Dr_Bermudez) June 16, 2019
The Greenland ice sheet is currently going through a major melting this week, covering almost half its surface — unprecedented in its extent for this early in the year.
This has not happened before. pic.twitter.com/vvh3scodLy— Eric Holthaus (@EricHolthaus) June 13, 2019
Reminds me of sea ice we worked on near Cambridge Bay in the Canadian Arctic back in June 2014. Jens here is well over 6 ft tall 😀 Felt like standing on the ocean! pic.twitter.com/V803FK9n7s
— Jack Landy (@jclandy) June 18, 2019
This truly shows what is the impact of climate change to nature. This is our only home 🌍
— Tautvydas (@Tautvydas_M) June 18, 2019
The shocking image is timely and relevant to Canada, which is warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world. (Circumpolar countries like Russia, Sweden and Finland are also seeing warming at a similar rate.)
On Monday, a national climate change emergency was declared in Canada, along with a commitment to meet the Paris Agreement emissions targets. The motion, which was put forward by Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna, passed in the House of Commons by 186-63 votes.
It describes climate change as a "real and urgent crisis, driven by human activity" and urges that steps be taken in clean growth methods in order to reduce greenhouse gas emission.