The heat wave also hit Antarctica

12.09.2024

Until now, Antarctica has been the only place on the planet that has not been negatively affected by heat waves. Temperatures here on most of the frozen continent remained well below freezing during the winter. Currently when winter reigns in Antarctica temperatures up to ten degrees Celsius higher than they should be have been recorded. The unusually high temperatures were caused by a heat wave in July which could raise temperatures until mid-August.

Photo:Pixabay

The fact that the record heat wave has spread to the territory of Antarctica is a warning sign for scientists. They are concerned that rising temperatures will negatively affect the continent's health in the coming years and trigger a massive ice melt.

Abnormal temperatures prevail mainly in the eastern part of Antarctica. The consequences of melting more ice would negatively affect millions of people on the planet. This is where the most ice is stored. The current ice volume is just over 25 million cubic kilometers. If all the ice in Antarctica were to melt, which is unlikely to ever happen ocean levels would rise by an incredible 46 meters.

Experts agree that even if only a small amount of ice melts some island countries will already be facing problems. In addition to islands, coastal cities with millions of inhabitants are most at risk.

It is certain that there will be a loss of ice this year because it will not have time to recover during the warm winter. The greatest fear of meteorologists is that accelerated melting could cause a weakening of ocean currents which significantly contribute to the climate of the entire planet.

A warning sign is that even last year part of Antarctica was hit by a heat wave which briefly raised temperatures by more than 20 degrees Celsius.