[✔️] September 12, 2022 - Global Warming News Digest

[Richard Pauli]

/*September 12, 2022*/

/[  cough, cough ] /
*Wildfire in Washington Blows Toxic Air to Seattle and Surrounding Areas*
Sept. 11, 2022
A rare westerly wind and rain showers offered a respite to fire response 
teams as they fought to keep a wildfire from reaching populated areas 
near Washington State’s Cascade Mountains on Sunday, a fire official said...
- -
Easterly winds pushed smoke and ash from the fire toward Seattle on 
Saturday, causing the air quality to turn toxic. Later, even with fresh 
air blowing in from the west, air quality in the Puget Sound area, 
including Seattle, was still considered hazardous on Sunday morning...
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/06/us/washington-fires-smoke-weather.html



/[  basic information about US oil production -  40 min video with great 
visuals - OP = Oil Producer  ]/
*How Geography Made The US Ridiculously OP*
Aug 31, 2022
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BubAF7KSs64



/[ mental health of Texans affected by climate change and extreme 
weather  ]/
*“It’s destroying me”: Storm after storm, climate change increases 
strain on Texans’ mental health*
Tens of thousands of coastal Texas residents have survived repeated 
extreme weather events including Hurricane Harvey. For many, it has 
taken an emotional toll, and researchers warn that climate change could 
be “catastrophic” for our mental health.
BY ERIN DOUGLAS SEPT. 8, 2022
https://www.texastribune.org/2022/09/08/texas-climate-change-mental-health/

- -

/[  Children's needs ]/
Kent Page
@KentPage
*Here's how climate change is impacting children:*
💔 1 billion are at high risk
💔 10 million were displaced in just one year
💔 Schooling disrupted & many more may join them soon
https://twitter.com/KentPage/status/1568796488008073218



/[ //virtual traveler says //farewell to a glacier - Itchy Boots riding 
to Alaska - now in Banff - Canadian Rockies ]/
*Canada won't have these for much longer 🇨🇦 |S6-E122|*
Sep 9, 2022  In this episode I'm riding my Honda CRF300L rally to 
Jasper, Canada. I'm visiting Emerald Lake, Lake Louis and ride the 
Icefields Parkway road - the scenery of the Rocky Mountains here is just 
breathtaking!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JazJjTxyR8

- -

/[ Climate scientist's Show and Tell video explains it well - science 
anxiety here ]/
*Can we stop ice sheets from melting?*
Sep 9, 2022  Melting ice sheets are the biggest danger to sea level 
rise. But researchers are investigating whether there could be a way to 
stop the flow of ice. Could these far-out ideas be worth it?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcQ4BzHGaS8



/[ briefing from LiveScience ]/
*'Doomsday Glacier' is teetering even closer to disaster than scientists 
thought, new seafloor map shows*
By Harry Baker  -- Sept 9, 2022
Researchers say the icy mass is "holding on by its fingernails."

Underwater robots that peered under Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier, 
nicknamed the "Doomsday Glacier," saw that its doom may come sooner than 
expected with an extreme spike in ice loss. A detailed map of the 
seafloor surrounding the icy behemoth has revealed that the glacier 
underwent periods of rapid retreat within the last few centuries, which 
could be triggered again through melt driven by climate change.

Thwaites Glacier is a massive chunk of ice — around the same size as the 
state of Florida in the U.S. or the entirety of the United Kingdom — 
that is slowly melting into the ocean off West Antarctica. The glacier 
gets its ominous nickname because of the "spine-chilling" implications 
of its total liquidation, which could raise global sea levels between 3 
and 10 feet (0.9 and 3 meters), researchers said in a statement. Due to 
climate change, the enormous frozen mass is retreating twice as fast as 
it was 30 years ago and is losing around 50 billion tons (45 billion 
metric tons) of ice annually, according to the International Thwaites 
Glacier Collaboration.

The Thwaites Glacier extends well below the ocean's surface and is held 
in place by jagged points on the seafloor that slow the glacier's slide 
into the water. Sections of seafloor that grab hold of a glacier's 
underbelly are known as "grounding points," and play a key role in how 
quickly a glacier can retreat.

In the new study, an international team of researchers used an 
underwater robot to map out one of Thwaites' past grounding points: a 
protruding seafloor ridge known as "the bump," which is around 2,133 
feet (650 m) below the surface. The resulting map revealed that at some 
point during the last two centuries, when the bump was propping up 
Thwaites Glacier, the glacier's ice mass retreated more than twice as 
fast as it does now.

Researchers say the new map is like a "crystal ball" showing us what 
could happen to the glacier in the future if it becomes detached from 
its current grounding point — which is around 984 feet (300 m) below the 
surface — and gets anchored to a deeper one like the bump. This scenario 
could become more likely in the future if increasingly warmer waters 
melt away the glacier's guts, according to the statement.

"Thwaites is really holding on today by its fingernails," study 
co-author Robert Larter, a marine geophysicist with the British 
Antarctic Survey, said in the statement. "We should expect to see big 
changes over small timescales in the future."

*Reading between the lines *
Researchers mapped out the bump using the underwater robot Rán (named 
after the Norse goddess of the sea), which spent around 20 hours 
scanning a 5-square-mile (13 square kilometers) section of the former 
grounding point.

The resulting map showed that the bump is covered with around 160 
parallel grooved lines that give it a barcode-like appearance. These 
strange-looking grooves, which are also known as ribs, are between 0.3 
and 2.3 feet (0.1 and 0.7 m) deep. The spaces between the ribs range 
short and wide, between 5.2 and 34.4 feet (1.6 and 10.5 m) apart, but 
they are most commonly around 23 feet (7 m) apart.

These ribs are actually imprints that were left behind as the high tide 
briefly lifted the glacier off the seafloor, which slightly nudged the 
ice mass further inland before the low tide lowered it back down. Each 
rib represents a single day; collectively, the lines map out the gradual 
movement of the glacier over a period of around 5.5 months. The varying 
depths and spaces between the ribs match the cycle of spring and neap 
tides, with the glacier being moved farther and with greater force 
during the former. (During spring tides, high tides are higher and low 
tides are lower. During neap tides, high tides are lower and low tides 
are higher.)

"It's as if you are looking at a tide gauge on the seafloor," study lead 
researcher Alastair Graham, a geological oceanographer at the University 
of South Florida, said in the statement. "It really blows my mind how 
beautiful the data are." However, the eye-catching grooves on the 
seafloor are also cause for concern, he added.

Based on the spacing of the ribs, the researchers estimated that when 
the Thwaites glacier was anchored on the bump, the icy mass retreated at 
a rate of between 1.3 and 1.4 miles (2.1 and 2.3 km) per year. This 
means that the glacier was retreating almost three times faster than it 
was between 2011 and 2019, when it was receding at a rate of around 0.5 
miles (0.8 km) per year, according to satellite data...

Researchers are unsure exactly when the glacier sat on top of the bump, 
but it was definitely within the last two centuries and was most 
probably sometime before the 1950s. The team was unable to take the 
necessary core samples from the seafloor to properly age the bump 
because increasingly icy conditions around the glacier meant that they, 
too, had to swiftly retreat from the region, according to the statement. 
However, the team intends to return soon to properly answer this 
important question.

The new findings are worrying because they show that the Thwaites 
glacier experienced "pulses of very rapid retreat" even before the 
effects of climate change increased the current rate of ice loss, Graham 
said. It shows that the glacier has the potential to accelerate much 
faster if it becomes detached from its current grounding point and 
anchors to a subsequent bump-like grounding point, he added.

Past research using robotic subs has shown that surprisingly warm water 
beneath the glacier may be melting the underbelly of the icy mass, which 
could quickly push the glacier toward this tipping point.

"Once the glacier retreats beyond [the current] shallow ridge in its 
bed," it could take just a few years to accelerate to a similar rate of 
retreat during the age of the bump, Larter said.

The study was published online Monday (Sept. 5) in the journal Nature 
Geoscience( ref below).
https://www.livescience.com/antarctica-doomsday-glacier-retreat-potential
- -
/  [   the biggest unstable glacier  ]/
*Rapid retreat of Thwaites Glacier in the pre-satellite era*
Alastair G. C. Graham, Anna Wåhlin, Kelly A. Hogan, Frank O. Nitsche, 
Karen J. Heywood, Rebecca L. Totten, James A. Smith, Claus-Dieter 
Hillenbrand, Lauren M. Simkins, John B. Anderson, Julia S. Wellner & 
Robert D. Larter
Nature Geoscience (2022)Cite this article
Published: 05 September 2022

    *Abstract*
    Understanding the recent history of Thwaites Glacier, and the
    processes controlling its ongoing retreat, is key to projecting
    Antarctic contributions to future sea-level rise. Of particular
    concern is how the glacier grounding zone might evolve over coming
    decades where it is stabilized by sea-floor bathymetric highs. Here
    we use geophysical data from an autonomous underwater vehicle
    deployed at the Thwaites Glacier ice front, to document the
    ocean-floor imprint of past retreat from a sea-bed promontory. We
    show patterns of back-stepping sedimentary ridges formed daily by a
    mechanism of tidal lifting and settling at the grounding line at a
    time when Thwaites Glacier was more advanced than it is today. Over
    a duration of 5.5 months, Thwaites grounding zone retreated at a
    rate of >2.1 km per year—twice the rate observed by satellite at the
    fastest retreating part of the grounding zone between 2011 and 2019.
    Our results suggest that sustained pulses of rapid retreat have
    occurred at Thwaites Glacier in the past two centuries. Similar
    rapid retreat pulses are likely to occur in the near future when the
    grounding zone migrates back off stabilizing high points on the sea
    floor.

*Main*
Ice loss from West Antarctica’s second largest marine ice stream, 
Thwaites Glacier, is currently a major uncertainty for future sea-level 
projections. Its bed deepens upstream to >2 km below sea level, and 
warm, dense, deep water delivers heat to the present-day ice-shelf 
cavity, melting its ice shelves from below. Together, these conditions 
make Thwaites Glacier susceptible to runaway retreat. Satellite radar 
observations of change in the ice stream show that its fast-flowing 
trunk has sped up, thinned and widened since 2011, while there has been 
spatially variable grounding-line retreat. Such changes have occurred as 
a consequence of reduced buttressing from weakened contact with a 
shallow ridge at the Eastern Ice Shelf terminus,...
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-022-01019-9


/
/

/[ time to check the air conditioning ]/
*Air conditioning has a climate problem. New technology could help.*
Researchers and start-ups are racing to develop innovative air 
conditioning units fit for a hotter future
By Shannon Osaka
September 10, 2022...
- -
The problem is that refrigerants can leak out of air conditioners, both 
during use and, more commonly, when the ACs are discarded. Early ACs 
were largely made with chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, which were 
responsible for one of the first truly global climate anxieties: the 
hole in the ozone layer. CFCs were phased out by the 1987 Montreal 
Protocol, an international treaty to counteract ozone hole depletion, 
and eventually replaced by hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs.

But HFCs have their own problem — they are greenhouse gases that, in the 
short term, are thousands of times more potent than carbon dioxide. An 
amendment to the Montreal Protocol has HFCs set to phase down 
dramatically by the mid-2040s; in the meantime, however, they’re still 
contributing to global warming.

*The next generation*
There are a lot of ways to make existing AC technology more efficient. 
Some newer AC units use different refrigerants, such as one known as 
R-32, which has less planet-warming potential than other 
hydrofluorocarbons and also takes less energy to compress, thus saving 
electricity. Other units use technology known as “variable speed 
compressors,” that allow the unit to run on different settings. The 
compressor can speed up if it’s 100 degrees Fahrenheit and sweltering, 
or slow down if it’s only 85 degrees. That can help save on electricity 
and utility bills.

And more advanced models are just around the corner. Kalanki was one of 
the leaders of an initiative at RMI known as the Global Cooling Prize, 
which rewarded manufacturers who could produce affordable AC prototypes 
that would be at least five times better for the climate than existing 
models. Two companies received the prize in tandem: Gree Electric 
Appliances and Daikin Industries. Both used traditional vapor 
compression technology but with improved refrigerants and clever designs 
that could change settings in response to outdoor temperatures.
- -
Other companies, start-ups, and researchers are investigating whether 
they can ditch vapor compression entirely. A start-up called Blue 
Frontier uses a liquid that sucks moisture from the air and stores it in 
a tank to control the temperature. According to the company, this 
approach could save up to 60 percent of the electricity required to run 
an AC year-round. And a group of researchers at Harvard University has 
developed an air conditioning prototype that they call coldSNAP. The 
prototype doesn’t use a refrigerant, but uses a special coating on a 
ceramic frame to evaporate water to cool the indoor space without adding 
moisture to the air. “Because we don’t have the vapor compression system 
and the energy of trying to release and compress the refrigerants, the 
energy consumption of these systems is far, far lower,” said Jonathan 
Grinham, one of the researchers on the project...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2022/09/10/air-conditioner-ac-unit-climate-change/


/[ Interview with Gov Insleee -- a calmly positive politician - says 
Washington State is investing widely in alternative energy ]/
*'New opportunities we didn't have before' – Gov. Inslee talks climate 
policy*
SEP 07, 2022
BY Kim Malcolm
Sarah Leibovitz
Washington is phasing out the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035.

Gov. Jay Inslee announced that decision just over a week ago.

It's one of a number of climate-based policies we've seen both here in 
Washington, and across the country in recent weeks.

Inslee ran on the need to address climate change in his 2020 
presidential campaign.

But, big as they are, are these latest steps big enough?

Soundside guest host Kim Malcolm sat down with Gov. Inslee to ask him 
about recent environmental decisions made by the state.

On banning the sale of new gas-powered vehicles after 2035
"We've been planning to do this for quite some time," Inslee said. He 
noted that the decision was delayed until California announced a similar 
ban due to federal law. "The only way to solve this problem is to go to 
zero emission vehicle."

Inslee said the state has appropriated $1 billion to pay for things like 
new charging stations for electric vehicles, which includes $69 million 
in the current fiscal year for community based onsite charging stations.

"We have $71 million over the next five years that are coming in federal 
funds for fast charging stations along our highways," Inslee said. "We 
have $25 million directed to those low-income Washingtonians to make 
sure that they can get charging infrastructure."

Inslee noted new federal legislation will help increase charging 
infrastructure as well.

The governor acknowledged that the state will have to determine a new 
revenue source for road maintenance, which currently comes from a gas 
tax. But that, he says, is a problem for years down the line, with 
plenty of time to find solutions.
- -
The governor also acknowledged the importance of having tribal members 
at the table when discussing the future of the dams and he emphasized 
that any energy solution is going to have some impact.

"For wind, it's visually you can see the wind turbines. For solar, it's 
visual and it takes up land," Inslee said. "So, we have to recognize if 
we are going to have clean energy, there are going to be some impacts 
somewhere."

On fighting feeling hopeless about climate change
Inslee responded to a question from a KUOW listener about feeling 
hopeless in the face of a continuing onslaught of climate-related news, 
most of which is bad.

"The number one antidote to fear and anxiety is action," Inslee said. 
"If you want to try to reduce the stress you're feeling, the number one 
thing you can do is to take action."

 From voting and supporting candidates to going into the clean energy 
industry as a career, Inslee said every single person can take action 
and have an impact.
https://kuow.org/stories/new-opportunities-we-didn-t-have-before-gov-inslee-talks-climate-policy



/[ reminder of a recent scientific paper //- very impactful //]/
*Climate Endgame: Exploring catastrophic climate change scenarios*
Edited by Kerry Emanuel, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 
Cambridge, MA;
August 1, 2022

    "How bad could climate change get? As early as 1988, the landmark
    Toronto Conference declaration described the ultimate consequences
    of climate change as potentially “second only to a global nuclear
    war.” Despite such proclamations decades ago, climate catastrophe is
    relatively under-studied and poorly understood."

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2108146119
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2108146119



/[The news archive - looking back at unintended consequences ]/
/*September 12, 2008*/
September 12, 2008:
In his "Bushed" segment, MSNBC's Keith Olbermann observes:

"Number two: Blood for oil-gate.  You will recall that cat got out of 
the bag early this summer when ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, Total, BP, 
and a couple of other western companies got the first contracts to 
handle Iraqi oil in the post-Saddam era.  The contracts were, oddly 
enough, no-bid deals.  And they involve oil with which, we had been told 
in 2003, the Iraqis would pay for the entire cost of the war themselves.

"Well, guess what?  The Iraqis have cancelled the deals.  On the other 
hand, Iraq has confirmed its first major post-Saddam oil contract with a 
major global player: the China National Petroleum Corporation.  So, 
we‘ve sent 4,100 Americans to their death in Iraq to make that country 
safe for big oil. Chinese big oil."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD53dyadmss

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/11/world/middleeast/11iraq.html?_r=0


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