North pole ice melt may set new record

Given that it's the middle of summer in the northern hemisphere, it's not surprising that melting is a regular theme. Don't want to sound alarmist and say "the sky is falling", but...... "the ice caps are melting!!"

This from Robin McKee of the UK Guardian:
Meltdown In The Arctic Is Speeding Up

Scientists warn that the North Pole could be free of ice in just five years’ time instead of 60

Satellite images show that ice caps started to disintegrate dramatically several days ago as storms over Alaska’s Beaufort Sea began sucking streams of warm air into the Arctic.

As a result, scientists say that the disappearance of sea ice at the North Pole could exceed last year’s record loss. More than a million square kilometres melted over the summer of 2007 as global warming tightened its grip on the Arctic. But such destruction could now be matched, or even topped, this year...

Addendum - August 12
Rush to Arctic As Warming Opens Oil Deposits
Interesting that the US coast guard, despite denials, is doing advanced oil and natural gas exploration in the Arctic which will benefit who? The oil and gas companies who share some of the responsibility for global warming which has opened up the north to exploration.

It’s a scramble for the spoils of global warming as the rapid melting of Arctic sea ice is opening access to previously unreachable deposits of oil and gas, setting off a race by northern nations - including the United States, Canada and Russia - to claim them.

So what motivation is there at all for big Oil to slow down? None whatsoever. In fact, the faster they can melt all the northern sea ice the sooner they can start drilling for more oil and gas.