WATCHING THE PASSAGE OF TIME AT THE ENDS OF THE EARTH
Svalbard 2019 (Author photo)
There were polar bears — though far fewer than we’d hoped; there were walruses and seals and the occasional reindeer or Arctic fox. But what took my breath away was the beauty: shimmering white and muted azure as far as the eye could see.
I visited the Svalbard archipelago, between the coast of Norway and the North Pole, in June of 2019 on a trip sponsored by Climate One. Spotting wildlife and taking in the beauty of the scenery were high on everyone’s list, but the main purpose of the expedition was to see — up close and personal — what the warming climate is doing to this northernmost cap of planet earth. It is not pretty.
Everywhere were the signs of melting sea ice and shrinking glaciers. Probably the most dramatic moment of the entire trip came when we witnessed glacier calving, as a giant chunk of a nearby glacier sliced off and into the sea. (Climbing on land was its own additional reward.)
Hiking the Svalbard mountains (Author photo, 2019)
Today there’s an expedition underway — this one seriously scientific and definitely not for tourists — at the other end of the world. They are already gathering important data and with a little luck they’ll be able to leave instruments in place deep under the sea that can prove invaluable to climate scientists (and others) going forward.
I’ve been following independent journalist Miles O’Brien (you can too!) who is aboard the South Korean icebreaker Araon near the Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica. Thwaites is also known as the Doomsday Glacier, for reasons you probably don’t want to focus on right before you try to go to sleep. Hint: Thwaites is melting faster than we might wish, especially any of us living on a coast that would vanish under a ten-foot sea level rise.
It’s been several weeks since the Araon left New Zealand, and much success has been recorded, including arrival at Thwaites on a crystal clear day. But the weather didn’t cooperate long enough for helicopters stashed onboard to fly to the glacier itself and stay long enough for scientists to drill deep into the ice and position their instruments.
According to O’Brien’s latest interview with crew members, the window of opportunity will close in another three or four days. Those of us following along are crossing fingers and sending up prayers to the weather gods. The expedition won’t be a failure if scientists are unable to leave instruments on the glacier — but that’s the holy grail and everyone’s hope.
Remembering lessons of the North Pole seven years ago, and watching these fascinating scenes at the other pole in real time reinforces the bottom line to this observer: climate change is here; it’s happening. The more we know, the better we understand.
Meanwhile the current administration pushes ahead with policies to boost fossil fuels, cut funding for clean energy and renewables, eliminate environmental protections . . . as if there were no tomorrow.
Which will some day be true.
