Autumn Arctic Warming At Record High, Reindeer Population May Be Declining

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Seasonal temperatures in the Arctic
have reached record highs. The Arctic Ocean is
becoming warmer and less salty as sea ice melts, and reindeer herds are in
decline as a result of climate change, according to a new report.

“The planet is interconnected, so what happens in the Arctic does matter” to the entire planet, said Jackie
Richter-Menge of the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory

“There continues to be widespread and, in some cases,
dramatic evidence of an overall warming of the Arctic system,” the experts said
in the third annual Arctic
Report Card from the federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The new report, compiled by 46 scientists from 10 countries,
focused on specific areas to conclude that the global region is experiencing
dramatic and unprecedented seasonal changes: atmosphere, sea ice, Greenland, ocean, biology and land.

Findings from the report include information about Arctic
autumn air temperatures, now at a record nine degrees above normal. Reindeer
herds, which have been increasing since the 1970s, are now showing signs of
stagnation or may be beginning to decline, MSNBC and the Associated Press
report.