NASA confirms widespread melting in Western Antarctica

NASA scientists say they have found evidence of the effect of global warming in Western Antarctica where a massive amount of snow and ice had melted in January 2005 in response to warm temperatures. This was the first widespread Antarctic melting ever detected with NASA's QuikScat satellite and the most significant melt observed in three decades, NASA said in a press release on May 15. The area affected is about the size of California. Using data from QuikScat, scientists measured snowfall accumulation and melt in Antarctica and Greenland from July 1999 through July 2005. The NASA scientists reported that the meltdown was not limited to low-lying areas of the Antarctic, evidence of melting was found up to 560 miles inland from the open ocean, about 310 miles from the South Pole and higher than 6,600 feet above sea level. Maximum air temperatures at the time of the melting were unusually high, reaching more than 41degrees Fahrenheit in one of the affected areas. They remained above melting for approximately a week. According to NASA's findings, the 2005 melt was intense enough to create an extensive ice layer when water refroze after the melt. However, the melt was not prolonged enough for the melt water to flow into the ocean. Large amounts of Antarctic freshwater flowing into the ocean also could affect ocean salinity, currents and global climate.