The past seven years in the Arctic have been the hottest seven years since 1900.
The warmer temperatures are causing major shifts in ecological and landscaping processes in the Arctic. Summer is coming earlier and winter is starting later, the report found, decreasing the length of the snow season. For example, snow cover in June across the region has declined around 20 percent in recent decades.Even though winter snow accumulation was above average this year, warmer temperatures are causing it to melt earlier.
The earlier snowmelt and the hot, dry conditions in Alaska were a critical factor in the widespread wildfires this summer. More than 2 million acres burned across the entire state by July. Wildfire smoke worsened air quality, reducing visibility at the Fairbanks airport.Greenland also experienced an extended warm season.
The report stated the September melt events are “challenging how researchers define the Greenland summer melt season.”Warmer temperatures are also increasing the amount of rain across the Arctic. In a hotter world, heavy precipitation events are becoming 7 percent more intense for every 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit of warming. The Arctic experienced wetter-than-normal conditions for the much of the past year, part of a longer trend.
In 2022, increased rainfall was also apparent in eastern Greenland, Svalbard, Norway and the central Arctic Ocean.“We are seeing increased precipitation across the Arctic within all seasons … That not only means total accumulation, but it also means longer periods of wet conditions,” Druckenmiller said.
John Walsh, the lead author of the new chapter on precipitation, said researchers don’t know if storms in the region are becoming more frequent but said they could be getting wetter. Arctic storms are passing over warmer and more open waters, which allows for more water to evaporate into a storm system.
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