A good response to the Science article can be found at
http://www.john-daly.com/#life
Apparently the data relied upon by the researchers ended 10 years ago. John Daly
points out that there is local and more current data that shows the opposite of
what is claimed in the article.


Chuck Dolci
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Subject: [EN] A recent item on AOL about global warming..
To: [log in to unmask]

Don't know how many of you have AOL, but I thought I'd pass this on...it came
up today.

-Steve Gregory-

Antarctic Study Finds Warming Change

By LAURAN NEERGAARD
.c The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (Jan. 24) - A surprise discovery in Antarctic lakes could have
important implications for global climate change: As the air got a little
warmer, it set off a chain reaction that made the water warm three times
faster.

That's important because if water gets even a degree warmer, the change can
seriously impact plants and animals that live there - in ways good or bad.
Indeed, scientists found these polar lakes rapidly underwent ''extreme
ecological change.''

The discovery, published in Friday's edition of the journal Science, may
prove a model for how global warming might ultimately affect waters in other
parts of the world.

''I suspect this is an indicator of things to come,'' said lead researcher
Lloyd S. Peck of the British Antarctic Survey.

The study may seem confusing in light of last week's news that parts of
Antarctica appear to be cooling, not heating. But Antarctica is a huge
continent and Peck studied lakes on the Antarctic Peninsula, a spot where
scientists agree air temperatures have risen in recent decades five times
faster than global average temperatures.

Experts on climate change called the study a good illustration of how local
changes can have larger-than-expected consequences.

''We need to start thinking about how these types of temperature changes are
going to affect our ecosystems,'' said Benjamin Preston of the Pew Center on
Global Climate Change, which next week plans to release a report analyzing
climate change's potential effects on U.S. aquatic life.

The polar lakes study suggests that maybe scientists should check whether
smaller warming trends already are affecting places like the Great Lakes or
Chesapeake Bay, he said.

Polar lakes are considered early detectors of environmental change.

Peck's group found that winter temperatures of 17 lakes on Antarctica's
Signey Island increased by up to 1.3 degrees Celsius between 1980 and 1995.
That doesn't sound like much - but it was three times faster than air
temperatures increased.

Photographic analysis shows Signey's permanent ice cover has receded by about
45 percent since 1951, the scientists report. In turn, ice covered lakes for
63 fewer days in 1993 than in 1980.

Extra time for water to absorb sunlight means more than just temperature
change. First, runoff from nearby thawed ground increased nutrients in the
lakes. Phytoplankton living in the water are extremely sensitive to light.
That plus more nutrients made populations flourish.

This is an ''extreme response,'' Peck said. But, ''we expect environmental
change in our own parts of the world,'' he added. Using polar lakes as a
model should help scientists ''understand what's going on with rapid
environmental changes elsewhere.''

 AP-NY-01-24-02 1400EST

Copyright 2002 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news
report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed
without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active
hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

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