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Ice melting across globe at accelerating rate, NASA says: CNN.com 12/17/2008. By Emanuella Grinberg

You can read the whole story here:
Ice melting across globe at accelerating rate, NASA says

Excerpt below:

"(CNN) -- Between 1.5 trillion and 2 trillion tons of ice in Greenland, Antarctica and Alaska have melted at an accelerating rate since 2003, according to NASA scientists, in the latest signs of what they say is global warming.

Source: The Independent (UK), December 28, 2007

By: Michael McCarthy

The Year in Review: The planet

Excerpt Below:

No denying the cold, hard facts

Source: BBC News, December 11, 2007
By Jonathan Amos
Science reporter, BBC News, San Francisco

Arctic summers ice-free 'by 2013'

NOTE: Because Arctic ice is already floating, melting this does not directly add to sea level rise. However, the Arctic ice melting changes the reflectivity of the Earth, adding to warming on a global scale.

"Scientists in the US have presented one of the most dramatic forecasts yet for the disappearance of Arctic sea ice.

Source: CNN December 11, 2007

Scientist: 'Arctic is screaming'

Excerpt:

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- An already relentless melting of the Arctic greatly accelerated this summer, a warning sign that some scientists worry could mean global warming has passed an ominous tipping point. One even speculated that summer sea ice would be gone in five years.

The BBC (September 19) reports on the historic opening of the fabled Northwest Passage from Europe to Asia. Plain sailing on the Northwest Passage

Below are some excerpts:
"This week, Europe's space agency (Esa) reported that the shrinking of Arctic ice had opened the fabled Northwest Passage, clearing a long-sought, but until recently impassable, route between Europe and Asia.

NOTE: since arctic ice is floating already, it's melting does not directly raise sea level. But the fact that the water is darker than the ice helps the planet absorb more heat over time.

BBC Monday, August 13, 2007. Reported by Mark Kinver:

You can read the whole article here:Arctic sea ice set to hit new low

"Arctic sea ice is expected to retreat to a record low by the end of this summer, scientists have predicted.

This site, hosted at NASA's Earth Observatory, presents the state-of-the-science for ice-melt on Greenland and the Arctic:

The Harvard University Gazette (February 28, 2007) reports on a talk given by James McCarthy, the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Biological Oceanography. Professor McCarty noted that the Arctic region would be among the earliest, and most affected areas due to climate change. His talk covered the recent IPCC report, mentioning some difficulties he saw in their sea-level rise predictions:

"One glaring omission in the [recent IPCC] report, McCarthy said, is that the IPCC's projections of sea-level rise are based merely on the expansion of existing seawater due to warmer temperatures. Left out because the data was too recent, he said, was additional information that melting glaciers and land-based ice would likely significantly contribute to rising seas. McCarthy cited one study that projected a sea level rise of between a half a meter and 1.4 meters by 2100.

The Arctic Sea ice

The floating sea ice of the Arctic covers an area equal to that of the United States. The permanent presence of sea ice, ice sheets, and continuous permafrost are unique features of the Polar Regions. Even though it is characterized by its harsh environment and vast landscapes the Arctic serves as the home of many forms of life, including organisms living in the ice, fish and marine mammals living in the sea, birds, land animals such as polar bears, and human societies. But much more than that, its white ice cover reflects huge amounts of sunlight and thereby helps the world stay cool.

"TORONTO, Ontario (AP) -- A giant ice shelf the size of 11,000 football fields has snapped free from Canada's Arctic, scientists said.

The mass of ice broke clear 16 months ago from the coast of Ellesmere Island, about 800 kilometers (497 miles) south of the North Pole, but no one was present to see it in Canada's remote north.

Scientists using satellite images later noticed that it became a newly formed ice island in just an hour and left a trail of icy boulders floating in its wake."

Reported by CNN Science and Space: December 29, 2006.