Arctic Vegetation

I just ran across this BBC Story from May 30, 2001. According to scientists, the amount of greenery in northern Alaska has doubled in the past 50 years. The study-area was in a location where human and natural disturbances are minimal. Researchers therefore attribute much of the increase to the recent change in climate. Studies of ancient peat deposits suggest that the same thing happened 8,000 years ago! (Or in other words, two pole shifts ago.) I also came across this BBC Story. Between the 1960s and 1990s, sonar data from submarines in the Arctic have revealed a 40% decrease in "draught" - a term for the difference between the surface of the ocean and the bottom of the icepack. The data was analyzed by British and American researchers.

Offered by Mike.