By the end of the decade, the Arctic Ocean could see its first ice-free day on record — even with modest levels of global warming.
It’s an unlikely scenario, but it’s possible. And it’s growing more plausible as humans continue pouring greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Scientists raised the alarm in a study published Tuesday in the scientific journal Nature Communications.
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The research — which relies on climate models simulating trends in global temperatures and Arctic sea ice concentrations — warns the only way to avoid an ice-free day within the next few years is to cut emissions fast enough to stay consistent with the Paris Agreement’s most ambitious goal, capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius.
