Climate warming rate is faster than predicted, French research report: Polar amplification effect appears in Antarctica
Recently, the French Climate and Environmental Science Laboratory released a research report led by it, which confirmed the polar amplification effect in Antarctica. The local climate warming rate is about twice that of the rest of the world, which is much faster than the predictions made by previous climate change models.
The research report is published in the journal Nature Climate Change. The research team sampled 78 Antarctic ice cores, analyzed historical data on Antarctic temperatures, and compared them with climate models and meteorological observation data. The results indicate that the average temperature in Antarctica increases by 0.22 to 0.32 degrees Celsius every 10 years, far higher than the 0.18 degrees Celsius increase predicted by previous climate models every 10 years. The first author of the paper, Dr. Mathieu Casado, stated that the study confirmed the polar amplification effect in Antarctica, with a warming magnitude nearly twice the world average.
The polar amplification effect, formerly known as the Arctic amplification effect, refers to the phenomenon in which the Arctic region absorbs more heat and the warming amplitude is greater than the global average due to factors such as reduced surface albedo caused by melting ice and snow in the context of global warming. The phenomenon in the Arctic region has reached a consensus in academia, but there have been doubts about the meteorological significance of the warming situation in Antarctica.
The research team is concerned about the extent of climate change in Antarctica: "It is very concerning to see such significant warming in Antarctica, beyond the range of natural changes. All of our predictions for future sea level rise are based on previously underestimated warming rate data. Models may underestimate the loss of sea ice." Dr. Kyle Klem, a scientist at Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, said that Antarctica's climate has always been affected by significant natural fluctuations, but the study shows that "there have been detectable unexpected changes in the Antarctic climate," proving the existence of "artificial polar amplification effects" in Antarctica. Klim stated that rapid warming of the Antarctic climate will have a series of consequences: "In terms of rising sea levels, ocean warming has caused the melting of the ice shelf in western Antarctica and led to the retreat of the Antarctic ice sheet. In recent decades, this situation has occurred on the Antarctic continent, and with more severe warming in the Antarctic climate, this situation may spread to the vicinity of Antarctica earlier than expected."