Arctic sees warmest summer on record
- This summer was the Arctic's warmest on record as climate change advances
- It's impacting local communities that rely on wildlife for food and tourism
- Scientists are looking to Indigenous practices to help manage ecosystems
Summer (July-September) 2023 was the Arctic’s hottest on record. Map: Some areas, including northern Alaska and Canada, were 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit or more (darkest red) above the 1991-2020 average. Graph: Summer temperature compared to average each year from 1940-2023. Warming has accelerated in recent decades, reaching a new record in 2023. NOAA Climate.gov images, adapted from the 2023 Arctic Report Card. (Image credit: NOAA)\
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(NewsNation) —The warmest Arctic summer on record is evidence of accelerating climate change, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The Arctic is heating up faster than any part of the world, and this summer’s surface air temperatures were the warmest ever observed. The findings, reported in the NOAA’s 2023 Arctic Report Card, underscore a global need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad said.
“The overriding message from this year’s report card is that the time for action is now,” Spinrad said in a news release.
Overall, 2023 was the Arctic’s sixth warmest year on record, but communities have been feeling the effects of climate change for years through salmon shortages and fishery closures on the Yukon river and other Bering Sea Tributaries.
Those changes are impacting Indigenous communities that depend on salmon for food.
Warming river waters, for example, have been linked to heat stress in Chinook salmon, and warmer ocean waters may be contributing to both Chinook and chum species maturing as smaller adults, according to the NOAA.
Sockeye salmon, however, have grown faster under warmer conditions, boosting their survival as they migrate to the ocean.
Researchers are looking to Indigenous and local knowledge to address environmental challenges and to restore wetland ecosystems and forests, the NOAA noted.
Successful restoration of peatlands so far has helped improve water quality and bring back fish and birds.
