“There’s no sea ice at all,” she says. The usually stable sea ice that colonies rely on to rear their young in the Bellingshausen Sea just wasn’t there, likely causing a “catastrophic breeding failure”. A study by Australian researchers in September found hemispheric wind patterns this year and last would usually have been associated with above-average sea ice cover. Sea ice on the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula and a map from the University of Colorado National Snow and Ice Data Centre showing the extent of sea ice on 24 September 2023. Reducing fossil fuels may not save the west Antarctic ice sheet, but other climate impacts can be avoided through decisive action.

Source: Punch December 31, 2023 13:27 UTC