North Pole An 'Island' For First Time In History

Daily Mail:

The North Pole has become an island for the first time in human history.

Startling satellite pictures taken three days ago show that melting ice has opened up the fabled North-West and North-East Passages - making it possible to sail around the Arctic ice cap.

The opening of the passages has been eagerly awaited by shipping companies which hope they will be able to cut thousands of miles off their routes.

Read the whole story: Daily Mail

Comments

[fumes]

dunno about that first time thing. i looked up the history of greenland @ wikipedia and got this: ''However, a recent study suggests a much warmer planet in relatively recent geological times:
Scientists who probed two kilometers (1.2 miles) through a Greenland glacier to recover the oldest plant DNA on record said the planet was far warmer hundreds of thousands of years ago than is generally believed. DNA of trees, plants and insects including butterflies and spiders from beneath the southern Greenland glacier was estimated to date to 450,000 to 900,000 years ago, according to the remnants retrieved from this long-vanished boreal forest. That view contrasts sharply with the prevailing one that a lush forest of this kind could only have existed in Greenland as recently as 2.4 million years ago. The existence of those DNA samples suggest the temperature probably reached 10 degrees C (50 degrees Fahrenheit) in the summer and -17 °C (1 °F) in the winter. They also indicated that during the last interglacial period, 116,000–130,000 years ago, when temperatures were on average 5 °C (9 °F) higher than now, the glaciers on Greenland did not completely melt away.[17]'­' it seems like greenland will have us to thank for speeding up global warming and ships of every kind will be plying the waters once frozen.

[Paul]

The Norse lived in Greenland for almost 500 years and had farms and cattle, etc. It was only after the climate got colder around 1300 that the Norse settlements collapsed. In some ways things are going back to a time less than 1000 years ago.

Problem is no one knows how this will affect rainfall patterns in the continenal US. What if Illinois and Indiana become as dry as western Nebraska and Kansas as dry as Nevada?

Big problems for food production, even if Greenland would become habitable again.

[fumes]

i know! how on earth did people adapt before? i think people were tougher then, ya think?

[TimmySlagle]

"Problem is no one knows how this will affect rainfall patterns in the continenal US"

Not knowing the weather is a problem? Well it's a very old problem.

And if we don't know, it could go either way. It's just as possible that Nevada could become as green as Kansas, Kansas could become as green as Illinois, and Illinois could become a rainforest.

[twgbonehead]

Actually, the Norse lived in Iceland. They changed the names of Iceland and Greenland to throw off would-be visitors/invaders and keep Iceland for themselves.

Take a look at both Iceland and Greenland on Google maps (or any satellite equivalent) - both were named by the Norse.

[BlackbirdHighway]

Yes, when these climate changes happen over hundreds of thousands of years, it is natural!

But when those same climate changes happen in a couple hundred years, that is thousands of times faster, and that is NOT natural!

Finally, you have stumbled upon exactly what Global Warming is all about! It is the completely un-natural, vastly sped up, man-made, warming of the Earth!

[fumes]

are you calling us unnatural now, blackbird? we are not a part of nature how? we're here aren't we, what could be more natural than that? are you saying that we are some kind of exception to the rule, blackbird? don't we belong here? should we pick up and leave? do you think we should all organize and do something about global warming? snicker, you can't organize your desk blackbird!

[BannedInBoston]

Hey that must be why most Republicans are global-warming deniers. Dinosaurs NEED a warme climate to survive!

[darthdarcy]

It's those damn liberal satellites that's it, those damn liberal satellites­..!

[jwws007]

global warming (now global climate change because it's not getting warmer) is a crock

[rfshunt]

Scroll up. Read article.

[poco767c]

Thank you for your informed opinion, backed up by scores of peer reviewed scientific studies from reputable and credible sources. Oh wait.

[totaldisbelief]

What ever happened to the Hollow Earth Theory? (I refer you to statements made by Byrd )
Does this mean that the "door" into the inner earth will be found soon?

[mooph]

Yes. But then the reptile people from the south pole of the moon will invade Earth.

[957]

Yawn, first time in history? misleading info from the far left . And the ability for early man to cross over to america by way of a so called "land bridge" made possible because of the melting of ice/snow which allowed early man to populate this part of the world, well now how do we know that was the first time in history? It froze back up so will this.

[Exusian]

That would be prehistory or paleohistory.

You might want to learn how the English language works.

[darthdarcy]

The Ice Bridge wasn't from MELTING, it was from freezing during the ICE age...!

Jeeze Louise where do these people go to school, in the South..?

"Ice Bridge from melting"..­.and the let these people vote..!

[TrueBlueMajority]

some of these people don't go to school at all.

the quality of homeschooling depends of the knowledge level of the parents.

when the parents were homeschooled by people who didn't know anything, willful ignorance is passed on to a new generation.

[bb922335]

give me a f uck ing break. You people are a joke.

[clumberfeet]

The elusive North West Passage!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northwest_Passage

[OneVoiceInACrowd]

Tell us, how did that work out for him?

[mergina]

Yes, and Palin thinks it is being caused by polar bears, NOT MAN.

[mick7191]

What????

[pkafin]

Palin has commented that global warming is not caused by human activity and that polar bears are doing as well as they ever have. Mergina is making a sarcastic comment that pulls together actual items from the news.

It makes me think, mick7191 that you haven't fully vetted McCain's VP pick. Can't blame you. McCain apparently didn't either.

[robiform]

It is certainly probable that this phenomenon has happened before--the climate goes through warm and cool cycles. But it is also a possibility that human activity has contributed to this particular warming cycle. So, for people like Sarah Palin and the resident trolls here at HuffPost to deny this is to fly in the face of scientific thinking. Ooops, I forgot--"science" is a dirty word to these people!!

[PurplePhase]

I support efforts to curtail global warming and conserve energy. But let's keep it honest and not use the term "for the first time in history." At times, our planet was warmer than now. Geological history says so.

[UpstateSC]

Read the article again - it said "human history".

[dawp]

It should read 'In Recorded Human History', still it is a major development.

[danoj]

Easy there you are dangerously close to saying humans are not the cause of global warming. You will have the eviornuts pulling there hair out.

[rfshunt]

Working on labor day? You must really be desperate for that tr0ll dollar.

The "environuts" as you so graciously put it, have been predicting this, based on MAN-MADE global warming, for at least 20 years. What's shocking is how soon it's happened.

Here's an article from that wild-eyed hippie publication Fortune Magazine that dates back to 1988. It puts the blame squarely on man-made warming.
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1988/07/04/70739/index.htm

Your grandchildren will be soooo grateful that the people who are backing you have poured so many resources into stopping desperately needed action. We had a 20 year jump on this, and they made sure it was squandered.

I hope you are telling everyone in your family how much you oppose the "environuts" They will face a decision in the future on who to help and who not to help with the limited resources available to them. Good luck.

[mamacat]

It is unfortuneate that deniers of global warming, evolution, and of a round earth still proclaim their faith in their views. There is much scientific evidence available online, and it is possible for anyone interested to read it.

[johnnyjust]

The key word being "online."

PuffPost is online. Facts seem to dry up fast here.

[Kula]

The first time in history? How do we know this. Satellite technology is a little more than 40 years old and history is a long time. The title is misleading.

[cindyw]

But if that passage had been open before, ships probably would have been using it for hundreds of years. We would have known.

[PurplePhase]

The earth's geological history, its age, is estimated to be 4.5 BILLION years

Trans-oceanic ships capable of navigating the harsh cold Arctic waters have been around for several HUNDRED years only.

[poco767c]

Ice coring is a remarkably accurate method of dating ice floes.

[bb922335]

uh..are you for real?

[mick7191]

I think they are referring to recorded history.

[bb922335]

i think we are referring to bul lsh it.

[Exusian]

For some people ignorance truly is bliss.

The rest of us have to deal with reality rather than ignore and deny it.

[danoj]

The whole global warming movement is misleading let alone the title.

[Saganslegacy]

If you say so, Albert.

[Exusian]

How do we know this? By examiniing Arctic sediment cores. Different species inhabit Arctic waters when there is is permanent ice cover than when there is open water. Their remains are found in the sediment layers, enabling us to determine when the Arctic was ice-free. It's called science.

[rfshunt]

Exusian!

So great to have your voice here, raising the level of discourse. Hope your labor day is fun.

[Kula]

So you can tell by a core sample the extent of Arctic ice? Ridiculous.

[Cybesq]

HERE IS ALL THAT DEMOCRATS WOULD NEED TO DO IN ORDER TO WIN IN NOVEMBER:

Air a commerical with polar bears struggling to stay afloat and cut to excerpts of Palin suggesting that Polar Bears do not need to be put on the endangered species list. Then show a picture of the North Pole as an island for the first time in human history. Then cut to an excerpt of Palin suggesting that global warming is not man made.

End the commercial with the polar bear going under for the last time, with the words: McCain/Palin. You're next.

[metalpipe]

Right f**king on, I like it!

[WilliePilgrim]

How would you know the polar bear you show in your proposed video is actually drowning if it's still swimming? Are you suggesting that your film makers go out and conjur it up or that you fake it or that you actually follow the bear until you watch it drown? How common do you think drowning bears are?
How about a video of a harp seal...one that survives to reproduce because the population of polar bears in the seals' nursery haul-out has been reduced by nature's throwing the predators a curve ball, just as it has for millions of years...et­ernally changing. We could pull out of the video with an image of a rare colony of scavanger organisms that live on the bottom of the arctic seabed eating a carcass of what is or was a polar bear with the voice over..."sc­ience, it's not just cute polar bears."
.

[Cybesq]

They say that rats, mice, mosquitos, and other disease carriers would flourish in a warmer environment. In 1995, a large outbreak of dengue hemorrhagic fever, a mosquito-borne tropical disease that can be fatal, occurred along the Rio Grande, the Texas-Mexico border. That was well north of its usual zone, raising fears it could migrate into the southern United States. One day its more harp seals, the next day someone you know might get sick.

"Science, its not just cute polar bears" is good, but how about we amend it slightly. "Science, its not just cute polar bears, but they sure are cute enough to get science ignorant people's attention.­"

[gcallaghan]

The seals' lobby applauds mcpow's selection of Palin as his running mate

[yallerdog]

From the Polar Bears International FAQ http://www.polarbearsinternational.org/bear-facts/the-sea-bearr):
[Among] bears, the polar bear is considered a marine mammal
They have been known to swim more than 60 miles without a rest.
The polar bear's swimming limit is not known.

To make your commercial effective, I suggest cement shoes on your bear. It's all about truthiness after all!

[Cybesq]

"The polar bear's swimming limit is not known" but they have been known "to swim more than 60 miles without a rest".

Have they been known to swim 400 miles without a rest?

In May 2004 when the Bush Administration's Department of Interior put Polar Bears on the endangered species list, was it because of the cement shoe problem?

"Truthiness" is ignoring the world's leading scientists (not to mention her running mate McCain) who believe that global warming is man made.

[BannedInBoston]

I think Democrats should air a commercial showing the Elephant Graveyard.­...

[blueshield]

Scientists at RepubliExx­oCheneyMob­ile University announced today that the shrinking polar ice cap was not the result of global warming, but in fact is being caused by global expansion.

"The earth is grossly overweight. This is leading to the global expansion.

We need to relieve crustal pressure, now. It may be possible to reverse this dangerous trend by a massive program to immediately remove subsurface deposits of ancient decayed matter."

President Boosh has already proposed multi-billion dollar grants to American energy companies, to expedite this Arctic rescue effort.

[Crackpothead]

"The North Pole has become an island for the first time in human history."

Probably not. The early 1400 century also went through a very warm spell and there is much speculation that it was possible to circumnavigate the pole.

Let's leave the hyperbole for sports reporters.

[DRaymond]

History presumes human ability to preserve information either through written of verbal history.

Thus if there is no record of this ever happening before then it is by definition the first time in history.

[jeroen63]

So history for you goes no further than say 4000 BC? Because that is about the time people started to record their history.

So what about dinosaurs? Ice-ages? Gondwana - anyone? As far as I recall there weren't any people to 'record' history then. Ever heard of science DRaymond? Because Crackpothead is right on the money.

Sadly enough the advocates of the perils that global warming may have in store for us, use the same fear mongering tactics Republicans use to state their political cases. And in both cases droves of people swallow it as the 'truth'.

[Crackpothead]

The 14th century (my typo in my original post) is well within the scope of recorded human history.

Scientific record keeping on a global scale is a relatively new phenomena and considering that the great age of Arctic exploration began only 150 years ago, I think the claim that this is the first time is weak.

[MadJeffersonian]

Great! Now we can drill easier there! DRILL DRILL DRILL DRILL! I need some cheap gas NOW!!!