1. The Cold War: The Arctic and Implications for the Future
By:
Simran Kaur
Carmen Ruiz
Briana Stob

2. Understanding the Phenomenon

3. Looking at the Data
September, 2007, total sea ice extent was only 4.1 million km²
Broke previous 2005 record by 1.2 million km² (which is comparable to the size of France, Spain, Belgium, Portugal and the Netherlands combined!)
Sea Ice Age: the young replacing the old – Irreparable?
An ice-free tomorrow

4. Understanding the Trend

5. Exception to the Melting Trend: The Antarctic
The Antarctic has been expanding northward by approximately 1% every decade for the last three decades

6. Attributed Causes of Increase of Sea Ice in the Antarctic
Ozone Depletion
Changing Ocean Dynamics
Flooding of the Sea Ice

7. Global Relevance
The increase of sea ice in the Antarctic is very minimal to the decrease of sea ice in the Arctic. Scientists predict that as ozone levels recover, there is likely to be 1/3 less ice.

8. Ecological Impacts Across the Arctic
Climate shifts and changes in the terrestrial and marine bio-physical system will directly impact the structure and function of ecosystems

9. Flora & Fauna
The seasonal and inter-annual variability of sea-ice affects many levels of the Antarctic marine ecosystem, from the timing and magnitude of seasonal primary production to the breeding success and survival of apex predators.

10. Complexity Threatened
The Arctic’s structural complexity is evident in nutrient cycling between terrestrial, freshwater, and marine components, which may be subject to rapid modification with future warming.