The Arctic ice has been found warming at double the rate of whatever is left for the world. In fact, the past year particularly has been marked by record-breaking high temperatures and low levels of sea ice.
As the sea ice melts, it uncovers the dark ocean below. Rather than radiating some of the sun's rays back into the atmosphere, the ocean absorbs the sun's heat, thus warming the planet more.
Black carbon adds a secondary element to this process. At a point when the soot covers the ice, it darkens the surface, absorbing more heat from the sun. In addition, it speeds up the melting of snow. Therefore, finding the source and in the meantime mitigating the impacts could have an immediate effect, and will eventually help in slowing the rapid melting of the Arctic.
Scientists have agreed to the fact that any global mitigation efforts have to be taken immediately and in a drastic way to lower the carbon dioxide emissions. As slowing black carbon could offer some hope. The biggest sources of these emissions include gas flaring and power plants.
As per climate experts, black carbon is 100 to 2,000 times more powerful in warming the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. The soot can travel long distances from where it is initially emitted, landing in the Arctic and worsening an already dire climate situation there.
Image Credit: earthobservatory.nasa.gov
