Arctic heating is not an exception, but a symptom of an altered climate. An shipping to the devalbard found that the temperatures increase 6-7 times more than the average here.
A new article published on Nature Communications From James Bradley, professor of environmental sciences at Queen Mary University in London, denounces a dramatic and disturbing change in the heart of Arctic winter. In February 2025, during a campaign on the field at the Allavalbard Islands, the team recorded exceptionally high temperatures, winter rains and an extensive process of melting ice, with water emerging from the ground, transforming the landscape into a surprisingly luxuriant tundra.
Water always, snow never. The spirits, heating from six to seven times faster than the global average, represent the test bench of the climatic crisis: the winter heating increase almost double compared to the annual average.
The research warns that temperatures above 0 ° C in the midst of winter are no longer isolated events, but the new rule of a drastically changed climate system. “The often snowy mantle has disappeared in a few days. The equipment I had brought to face Iu ice seemed like a relic of another climate, “says Bradley.
Bankrupt mission. The group, equipped for glacial temperatures, found itself instead working with bare hands in the rain – tangible sign of a rapid change. Laura Molas Moncayo, Doctoranda Queen Mary and Natural History Museum, explains that the goal was to collect fresh snow, a failed goal: in two weeks they found snow only once, the rest was winter rain. This makes it impossible to complete their scientific plans as well as compromising the safety of field operations.
Dangerous repercussions. The crossing of the “merger threshold”, that is, the beginning of the merger of ice in the middle of winter, radically transforms the physical environment, the dynamics of the ecosystems and even the methods of research conducted at high latitudes.
The repercussions are profound: the merger influences the microbial carbon cycles, the survival of arctic fauna, triggers a vicious circle that accelerates the undefacting of the permafrost, the microbial degradation of carbon and the release of greenhouse gases. Temporary lakes formed in the frozen soil; Vast areas have lost snow coverage, the naked surface stimulated an explosion of organic activity – and green vegetation has sprung up where only ice and snow was expected. Winter turns into early spring.
increasingly difficult research. The study asks for urgent investments to intensify Arctic winter monitoring, because there is a serious lack of data on this critical season. More capillaries and experiments are essential not only to consolidate reference parameters, but also to anticipate and avoid future damage.
The authors propose a revision of the policies: from reactive to preventive, placing winter in the center.
The difficulties encountered during the campaign – thin and muddy snow that made the area inaccessible, risks for snowmobiles and for the safety of researchers in case of encounters with polar bears – show how much field operations are becoming increasingly complex and dangerous.
