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Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

scientificamerican.com

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Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#21

Post by grecy »

gmuslera wrote: post #4

They focused on the water color, acidity, and the effect on the fishes, but they are not putting enough stress in the elephants in the room, the 2.4+ºC increase of average temperature northern regions over very few years (not since preindustrial times) and the massive permafrost thawing that is happening there. Yes, it is causing this. And many more things in those regions and all the world, for more time than a sing…

Yep, climate change is coming very fast across the North. It's already very noticeably different up there since I lived there from 2011-2015. Way, way warmer temperatures in the winter, the glaciers have retreated and shrunk drastically to the point I don't recognize photos of places I've spent a lot of time.

Heck, I live 2000 miles south now, and we can see our local glacier retreating yearly with our own eyes. Also it's raining today. In the middle of winter. Not good.

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#23

Post by avgcorrection »

samstave wrote: post #20
avgcorrection wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don’t get it.

In almost all Spiritual/Religious teachings - they say " The only constant in the universe is change " - so Its kind of banal to say " Scientists who studied the rivers simply allot it to Climate Change " as if its the profundity of Science here...

If `cl` is the climate change function then Climate Change really specifically is referring to the derivative of `cl` right now.

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#24

Post by troyvit »

samstave wrote: post #12
avgcorrection wrote: post #11

> Scientists who have studied these rusting rivers agree that the ultimate cause is climate change. quelle surprise

>" The only constant in the Universe is change... " Seems obvious now, doesn't it.

It might, but the first time I heard it (put differently) it blew my mind. The way I heard it was: There is no such thing as equilibrium in nature. It's more about constant imbalances.

It made me re-think our whole approach to environmentalism. When we attempt to restore something, what are we restoring it to?

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#25

Post by kortilla »

gmuslera wrote: post #4

They focused on the water color, acidity, and the effect on the fishes, but they are not putting enough stress in the elephants in the room, the 2.4+ºC increase of average temperature northern regions over very few years (not since preindustrial times) and the massive permafrost thawing that is happening there. Yes, it is causing this. And many more things in those regions and all the world, for more time than a sing…

Are you suggesting that there is some kind of global warming going on?! Someone should really say something.

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#26

Post by patall »

phkahler wrote: post #9

What nobody ever talks about is that some of the old organic stuff (roots, leaves) in the thawing permafrost did not grow there in recent times because that stuff won't grow in permafrost . This means the thawing of the permafrost is not new and that the area used to have more stuff growing there than it does now. We should expect a greening of parts of Alaska if the warming continues and growth resumes.

I have no idea above this, but aren't there plants growing on permafrost? As permafrost only starts in a depth of a few inches, those plants may well enter permafrost if they are in the ground above and slowly get submerged more and more.

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#27

Post by aaomidi »

kortilla wrote: post #25
gmuslera wrote: post #4

They focused on the water color, acidity, and the effect on the fishes, but they are not putting enough stress in the elephants in the room, the 2.4+ºC increase of average temperature northern regions over very few years (not since preindustrial times) and the massive permafrost thawing that is happening there. Yes, it is causing this. And many more things in those regions and all the world, for more time than a sing…

Are you suggesting that there is some kind of global warming going on?! Someone should really say something.

Man if only we knew about it a few decades ago....

Oh wait.

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#28

Post by graphe »

kortilla wrote: post #25
gmuslera wrote: post #4

They focused on the water color, acidity, and the effect on the fishes, but they are not putting enough stress in the elephants in the room, the 2.4+ºC increase of average temperature northern regions over very few years (not since preindustrial times) and the massive permafrost thawing that is happening there. Yes, it is causing this. And many more things in those regions and all the world, for more time than a sing…

Are you suggesting that there is some kind of global warming going on?! Someone should really say something.

No, it snowed.

Re: Why are Alaska's rivers turning orange?

#30

Post by jklinger410 »

kortilla wrote: post #25
gmuslera wrote: post #4

They focused on the water color, acidity, and the effect on the fishes, but they are not putting enough stress in the elephants in the room, the 2.4+ºC increase of average temperature northern regions over very few years (not since preindustrial times) and the massive permafrost thawing that is happening there. Yes, it is causing this. And many more things in those regions and all the world, for more time than a sing…

Are you suggesting that there is some kind of global warming going on?! Someone should really say something.

We got a snow storm last week, how would that be possible if the globe was warm?
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