A rare and alarming heatwave has struck the Antarctic Peninsula, pushing winter temperatures to unusual highs and breaking June climate records. Scientists report that the extreme warmth is leading to abnormal ice melt during a season that is typically frozen and stable. Experts warn that such events could signal a worsening climate trend, raising concerns about the long-term stability of polar ice and global sea level impacts.

Antarctica Winter Heatwave: Record Warmth Breaks June Climate Records

The ground temperature across ice sheet-Antarctica soared at an average of 10 degree Celsius above normal over the past month. The concerning and rare phenomenon is being described as a near record heatwave at one of world’s coldest places.

The world experienced 12 months of record warmth, with temperatures consistently exceeding the 1.5 degree Celsius rise above preindustrial levels that has been touted as the limit to avoiding the worst of climate overhaul.

While on the polar land mass, temperatures have remained below zero, the depths of southern hemisphere winter have reportedly reached 28 degrees Celsius above expectations on some days.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a data-ved="2ahUKEwjG3bOM9NWHAxXrhlYBHS8XE0QQxfQBKAB6BAgHEAE" href="https://www.wionews.com/science/antarctica-likely-warming-much-faster-than-prediction-of-climate-change-models-study-633633" jsname="YKoRaf" ping="/url?sa=t&amp;source=web&amp;rct=j&amp;opi=89978449&amp;url=https://www.wionews.com/science/antarctica-likely-warming-much-faster-than-prediction-of-climate-change-models-study-633633&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjG3bOM9NWHAxXrhlYBHS8XE0QQxfQBKAB6BAgHEAE">Antarctica likely warming much faster than climate change models predicted: Study</a>

Michael Dukes, the director of forecasting at MetDesk, said that while individual daily high temperatures were surprising, far more significant was the average rise over the month.

The models created by climate scientists have long predicted that the most significant effects of anthropogenic climate change would be on polar regions, “and this is a great example of that”, Dukes said.

“Usually you can’t just look at one month for a climate trend but it is right in line with what models predict,” he added.&nbsp;

“In Antarctica generally that kind of warming in the winter and continuing in to summer months can lead to collapsing of the ice sheets," Dukes further said.

Watch |&nbsp;Global warming worsened loss of sea ice | WION Climate Tracker

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This year in July, it was the first time in 14 months that temperature records were not broken.

Zeke Hausfather, a research scientist at Berkeley Earth, said Antarctica’s heatwave had “definitely been one of the bigger drivers in the spike of global temperatures in recent weeks”.

“Antarctica as a whole has warmed along with the world over the past 50 years, and for that matter 150 years, so any heatwave is starting off from that elevated baseline,” he said and added, “But it’s safe to say that the majority of the spike in the last month was driven by the heatwave.”

<h2>What is making the Antarctic region so warm?</h2>

In the past two years,&nbsp;heatwave has hit twice in the region, with the last being in March 2022, when temperature spiked to 39 degrees Celsius, causing a portion of the ice sheet the size of Rome to collapse!

Here also, we have El Nino to blame as Antarctica’s increased July temperatures follow a particularly strong El Nino.&nbsp;

This climate phenomenon has led to warming around the world in combination with the general increase in temperatures caused by climate breakdown, Dukes said.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a data-ved="2ahUKEwjG3bOM9NWHAxXrhlYBHS8XE0QQxfQBKAB6BAgJEAE" href="https://www.wionews.com/science/climate-change-we-instigated-is-here-to-stay-for-at-least-50000-years-study-668077" jsname="YKoRaf" ping="/url?sa=t&amp;source=web&amp;rct=j&amp;opi=89978449&amp;url=https://www.wionews.com/science/climate-change-we-instigated-is-here-to-stay-for-at-least-50000-years-study-668077&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjG3bOM9NWHAxXrhlYBHS8XE0QQxfQBKAB6BAgJEAE">Climate change we instigated is here to stay for at least 50,000 years: Study</a>

However, some experts attribute the heatwave in Antarctica to a weeks-long “southern stratospheric warming event” over the region.&nbsp;

“Those are really rare over Antarctica, so it wasn’t really quite clear how that would affect surface conditions on the continent,” said Jonathan Wille, a researcher studying climate science at ETH Zürich, a public research university in Zürich, Switzerland. &nbsp;

Though&nbsp;there “seem to be more and more frequent heatwaves over the continent”, it was not yet clear how much of a factor the climate crisis had been in creating this particular event, said Dukes.

(With inputs from agencies)

The ground temperature across ice sheet-Antarctica soared at an average of 10 degree Celsius above normal over the past month. The concerning and rare phenomenon is being described as a near record heatwave at one of world’s coldest places.

The ground temperature across ice sheet-Antarctica soared at an average of 10 degree Celsius above normal over the past month. The concerning and rare phenomenon is being described as a near record heatwave at one of world’s coldest places. The world experienced 12 months of record warmth, with temperatures consistently exceeding the 1.5 degree Celsius rise above preindustrial levels that has been touted as the limit to avoiding the worst of climate overhaul. While on the polar land mass, temperatures have remained below zero, the depths of southern hemisphere winter have reportedly reached 28 degrees Celsius above expectations on some days. Also Read | Antarctica likely warming much faster than climate change models predicted: Study Michael Dukes, the director of forecasting at MetDesk, said that while individual daily high temperatures were surprising, far more significant was the average rise over the month. The models created by climate scientists have long predicted that the most significant effects of anthropogenic climate change would be on polar regions, “and this is a great example of that”, Dukes said. “Usually you can’t just look at one month for a climate trend but it is right in line with what models predict,” he added. “In Antarctica generally that kind of warming in the winter and continuing in to summer months can lead to collapsing of the ice sheets," Dukes further said. Watch | Global warming worsened loss of sea ice | WION Climate Tracker × This year in July, it was the first time in 14 months that temperature records were not broken. Zeke Hausfather, a research scientist at Berkeley Earth, said Antarctica’s heatwave had “definitely been one of the bigger drivers in the spike of global temperatures in recent weeks”. “Antarctica as a whole has warmed along with the world over the past 50 years, and for that matter 150 years, so any heatwave is starting off from that elevated baseline,” he said and added, “But it’s safe to say that the majority of the spike in the last month was driven by the heatwave.” What is making the Antarctic region so warm? In the past two years, heatwave has hit twice in the region, with the last being in March 2022, when temperature spiked to 39 degrees Celsius, causing a portion of the ice sheet the size of Rome to collapse! Here also, we have El Nino to blame as Antarctica’s increased July temperatures follow a particularly strong El Nino. This climate phenomenon has led to warming around the world in combination with the general increase in temperatures caused by climate breakdown, Dukes said. Also Read | Climate change we instigated is here to stay for at least 50,000 years: Study However, some experts attribute the heatwave in Antarctica to a weeks-long “southern stratospheric warming event” over the region. “Those are really rare over Antarctica, so it wasn’t really quite clear how that would affect surface conditions on the continent,” said Jonathan Wille, a researcher studying climate science at ETH Zürich, a public research university in Zürich, Switzerland. Though there “seem to be more and more frequent heatwaves over the continent”, it was not yet clear how much of a factor the climate crisis had been in creating this particular event, said Dukes. (With inputs from agencies)

Antarctic temperatures rise 10C above average, experts are calling it a near-record heatwave

Earth's "vital signs" that point to the health of the planet are currently deteriorating at an alarming rate, a group of scientists announced on Wednesday.&nbsp;

Based on this, the researchers ascertained that severe effects of climate change would be felt soon.&nbsp;

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On Wednesday, researchers that constitute a group of over 14,000 professionals signed an international declaration calling recent events a "climate emergency" and added that governments across the globe had failed to acknowledge the crisis adequately.

The scientists also made a similar assessment in 2019, when they noted an "unprecedented surge" in climate-related disasters. An array of conditions were noted including record-breaking heatwaves, floods in South America and Southeast Asia, wildfires in Australia and the United states along with cyclones in Africa and South Asia.

The "vital signs" were measures from a key metric system which took into account greenhouse gas emissions, thickness of glaciers, sea-ice extent, and deforestation. The scientists found that 18 of these parameters hit record highs or lows.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/scientists-to-search-for-signs-of-extraterrestrial-technology-401116" hreflang="en">Scientists to search for signs of extraterrestrial technology</a>

For instance, a dip in pollution was noted during the pandemic, with which it was also linked. But as countries resumed industrial activity, the levels of CO2 in the atmosphere and methane hit an all-time high in 2021.

In Greenland and Antarctica, all-time low levels of ice mass were noted by scientists. They also found that glaciers are currently melting 31 per cent faster than they did 15 years ago.

Ocean heat and global sea levels have set new records since 2019. In 2020, the annual loss rate of the Amazon rainforest situated in Brazil hit a 12-year high.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/what-will-russias-nauka-do-at-the-international-space-station-401014" hreflang="en">What will Russia's 'Nauka' do at the International Space Station?</a>

The study was undertaken by the University of Exeter's Global Systems Institute. Researchers said there exists "mounting evidence" of humanity having crossed a number of climate tipping points which primarily include the melting of ice sheets in Greenland and West Antarctica.&nbsp;

Along with these events, the scientists also noted how climate change may now be irreversible on a scale of centuries, regardless of whether&nbsp;humans are able to cut down harmful emissions.

Earth's "vital signs" that point to the health of the planet are currently deteriorating at an alarming rate, a group of scientists announced on Wednesday. Based on this, the researchers ascertained that severe effects of climate change would be felt soon.

Earth's "vital signs" that point to the health of the planet are currently deteriorating at an alarming rate, a group of scientists announced on Wednesday. Based on this, the researchers ascertained that severe effects of climate change would be felt soon. On Wednesday, researchers that constitute a group of over 14,000 professionals signed an international declaration calling recent events a "climate emergency" and added that governments across the globe had failed to acknowledge the crisis adequately. The scientists also made a similar assessment in 2019, when they noted an "unprecedented surge" in climate-related disasters. An array of conditions were noted including record-breaking heatwaves, floods in South America and Southeast Asia, wildfires in Australia and the United states along with cyclones in Africa and South Asia. The "vital signs" were measures from a key metric system which took into account greenhouse gas emissions, thickness of glaciers, sea-ice extent, and deforestation. The scientists found that 18 of these parameters hit record highs or lows. Also read: Scientists to search for signs of extraterrestrial technology For instance, a dip in pollution was noted during the pandemic, with which it was also linked. But as countries resumed industrial activity, the levels of CO2 in the atmosphere and methane hit an all-time high in 2021. In Greenland and Antarctica, all-time low levels of ice mass were noted by scientists. They also found that glaciers are currently melting 31 per cent faster than they did 15 years ago. Ocean heat and global sea levels have set new records since 2019. In 2020, the annual loss rate of the Amazon rainforest situated in Brazil hit a 12-year high. Also read: What will Russia's 'Nauka' do at the International Space Station? The study was undertaken by the University of Exeter's Global Systems Institute. Researchers said there exists "mounting evidence" of humanity having crossed a number of climate tipping points which primarily include the melting of ice sheets in Greenland and West Antarctica. Along with these events, the scientists also noted how climate change may now be irreversible on a scale of centuries, regardless of whether humans are able to cut down harmful emissions.

Earth's 'vital signs' are worsening due to climate change, scientists warn

Nobody really knows why the leak happened, or the events leading up to it. A large quantity of methane is stored under the seabed in Antarctica, with this leak suspected to be a product of the warming of oceans.

Scientists discover a Methane leak in Antarctica's seabed