New evidence shows rapid response in the West Greenland landscape to Arctic climate shifts

New evidence shows that Arctic ecosystems undergo rapid, strong and pervasive environmental changes in response to climate shifts, even those of moderate magnitude, according to an international research team led by the University of Maine, reports Phys.org. 

Using more than 40 years of weather data and paleoecological reconstructions, the 20-member team quantified rapid environmental responses to recent abrupt climate change in West Greenland. They found that after 1994, mean June air temperatures were 2.2 degrees C higher and mean winter precipitation doubled to 40 millimeters. Since 2006, mean July air temperatures shifted 1.1 degree C higher.

The new evidence underscores the highly responsive nature of Arctic ecosystems to abrupt transitions—and the strength of climate forcing, according to the team, which published its findings in the journal Environmental Research Letters.