[TheClimate.Vote] May 27, 2020 - Daily Global Warming News Digest..

Wed May 27 08:49:44 EDT 2020

/*May 27, 2020*/

[Watch out]
*Permafrost in the Arctic can thaw faster than presumed*
Some of the coldest permafrost on Earth might be more vulnerable to 
thawing than previously thought...
- -
Air temperatures are increasing in high latitudes and in high mountain 
areas dominated by permafrost in the ground. When this permafrost thaws, 
large amounts of greenhouse gases can be released to the atmosphere, 
which can potentially intensify global warming.

Another consequence is that ice layers in the ground start to melt, so 
that the ground subsides and depressions with ponds and lakes form. This 
landscape change, which is known as "thermokarst", can once again 
accelerate permafrost thawing in a positive feedback to global warming...
- -
Sebastian Westermann, Associate Professor from the University of Oslo 
who has led the PERMANOR project, adds:

"Thermokarst not only affects permafrost regions in Siberia, we see the 
same processes in Norway, especially in peatlands in Finnmark. Within 
just a few years, new ponds have formed in our study areas, decreasing 
the permafrost area. In Norway, the permafrost is already now close to 
the freezing point, and we are observing many of the landscape changes 
that could occur in Siberia in the future."

Improves global climate model

The researchers have now started to implement the new simulation tools 
in Earth System Models, such as the Norwegian climate model NorESM. With 
this, it will be possible to improve future simulations of permafrost 
thaw not only in Siberia, but on the global scale.
https://phys.org/news/2020-05-permafrost-arctic-faster-presumed.html

[lower snow boots]
*Climate change could dramatically reduce U.S. snowstorms*
A new study led by Northern Illinois University scientists suggests 
American winters late this century could experience significant 
decreases in the frequency, intensity and size of snowstorms.
Under an unabated greenhouse gas emissions scenario, the study projects 
28% fewer snowstorms on average per year over central and eastern 
portions of North America by the century's last decade, with one-third 
the amount of snow or frozen precipitation and a 38% loss in average 
snowstorm size.
https://phys.org/news/2020-05-climate-snowstorms.html

[go North young man]
*Farmers Must Adapt as U.S. Corn Belt Shifts Northward*
As the climate changes, so will the prime area for growing corn and soy 
in the Midwest
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/farmers-must-adapt-as-u-s-corn-belt-shifts-northward/

[still see it on Vimeo]
*Michael Moore film Planet of the Humans removed from YouTube*
British environmental photographer's copyright claim prompts website to 
remove film that has been condemned by climate scientists
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/may/26/michael-moore-film-planet-of-the-humans-removed-from-youtube
- -
[piling on Michael Moore]
*George Monbiot Debunks Michael Moore's Planet of the Humans*
May 20, 2020
Double Down News
"Rich white people blaming poor brown people for an environmental 
problem mainly created by rich white people"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__UJ09PZFoI
- -
[never let a controversy go to waste -- reactions]
*'Planet Of The Humans' EP Michael Moore & Director Jeff Gibbs Blast 
"Blatant Censorship" After Controversial Documentary Yanked From 
YouTube; Pic Now Free On Vimeo - Update*
https://deadline.com/2020/05/planet-of-the-humans-pulled-youtube-michael-moore-jeff-gibbs-censorship-1202942938/

[Map of heatwave]
*Red alert for northern Siberia as heat shocks threaten life on tundra*
New temperature maps for the endless stretches of Russian Arctic lands 
bear witness of unprecedented warming.
By Atle Staalesen - May 25, 2020
April 2020 follows in the wake of a number of months with record-beating 
temperatures in northern Siberia. The remote tundra lands located along 
the Arctic Ocean are now among the regions of the world with the 
quickest warming.

Maps from the U.S National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show 
deviation from normal temperatures of more than five degrees Celsius 
over major parts of Siberia.

The visualizations depict average temperature departures in the first 
four months of 2020 with respect to a 1981-2010 base period.

Nowhere else on the globe are the same kind of dark blood-red deviation 
as in Siberia.

*Five degrees warmer*
The trend has been going on for many years. The latest climate report by 
Roshydromet says that average winter temperatures along the Northern Sea 
Route, the waters located along the country's Arctic coast, have 
increased by about 5 degrees since the 1990s. And the warming is most 
significant in the areas around the Kara Sea, the report reads.

April 2020 follows in the wake of a number of months with record-beating 
temperatures in northern Siberia. The remote tundra lands located along 
the Arctic Ocean are now among the regions of the world with the 
quickest warming.

The visualizations depict average temperature departures in the first 
four months of 2020 with respect to a 1981-2010 base period.
https://thebarentsobserver.com/sites/default/files/temperature.jan-april2020.jpg

Heat wave runs across northern Siberia in May 2020. Map by Roshydromet
The extraordinarily heat continues into spring. Temperature maps from 
Roshydromet show that another heat wave in mid-May swept over the 
region. In parts of northern Siberia, including the remote Arctic 
peninsulas of Yamal, Gydan and Taymyr, the average temperature on the 
23rd May were as much as 16 degrees Celsius higher than normal.

The warm weather and early spring has created a record-early ice 
break-up of several of the great Siberian rivers, among them the Yenisey.

At the same time, the high temperatures have prepared the ground for 
unprecedentedly early wildfires. Authorities in the Yamal-Nenets region 
inform that they are already combating as many as seven fires.

*Big change on tundra*
The high temperatures have a major effects on ecosystems in the region. 
Researchers from the Tomsk State University have over the last years 
discovered that a big number of lakes on the Yamal-Nenets tundra have 
turned into wetlands...
- -
The year 2016 is so far the warmest on record. But the following years 
have been only slightly colder. According to Roshydromet, 2019 was the 
second warmest year in the Arctic since measurements started in 1936.

The higher temperatures are accompanied by rapid growth of vegetation 
and greening of the region. This trend is very clear for indigenous 
peoples in the area, the researchers say.

Over the last decades they have seen a significant change of local bio 
diversity, the appearance of grass and new kinds of animals and insects.

*Expansion of industry*
The Arctic warming is evident also for the Russian shipping industry 
that over the last years has been able to make it across Arctic waters 
easier than any time before.

Supported by the lighter ice conditions in the area, ships in 2019 
transported 31,5 million tons of goods on the Northern Sea Route, an 
increase of almost 60 percent from the previous year.

On 18th May, LNG carrier "Christophe de Margerie" set out from Arctic 
seaport Sabetta in Yamal with course for the eastern part of the 
Northern Sea Route. The eastbound voyage on the route is this year's 
first of its kind and comes more than a month earlier than the previous 
years.

Few days later, the carrier was accompanied by sister ship "Vladimir 
Voronin", that now is entering melting Arctic sea ice with course for China.
https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/arctic-ecology/2020/05/red-alert-northern-siberia-heat-shocks-threaten-life-tundra

[Digging back into the internet news archive]
*On this day in the history of global warming - May 27, 2014 *
The New York Times reports:

"In state legislatures and major professional associations, a
bipartisan effort is emerging to change the way state attorneys
general interact with lobbyists, campaign donors and other corporate
representatives.

"This month, during a closed-door meeting of the National
Association of Attorneys General, officials voted to stop accepting
corporate sponsorships. In Missouri, a bill has been introduced that
would require the attorney general, as well as certain other state
officials, to disclose within 48 hours any political contribution
worth more than $500. And in Washington State, legislation is being
drafted to bar attorneys general who leave office from lobbying
their former colleagues for a year.

"Perhaps most significant, a White House ethics lawyer in the
administration of George W. Bush has asked the American Bar
Association to change its national code of conduct to prohibit
attorneys general from discussing continuing investigations or other
official matters while participating in fund-raising events at
resort destinations, as they often now do. Those measures could be
adopted in individual states.

"The actions follow a series of articles in The New York Times that
examined how lawyers and lobbyists -- from major corporations,
energy companies and even plaintiffs' law firms -- have increasingly
tried to influence state attorneys general."

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/27/us/bipartisan-effort-to-restrict-lobbyists-influence-of-attorneys-general.html

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