“An example of the rising temperature is that of Spitzbergen, only 800 miles from the North Pole. In 30 years the average winter level of the thermometer has gone up by nine degrees Celsius.
Vanishing ice
The ice-packs which once used to ring the north coast of Iceland for several months of the year allowing no passage, now only span the same area for 60 days. The almost impenetrable barrier in the Polar Sea has been replaced by ineffective floes lashing through the waves.”
“So much ice has vanished on Greenland,” the Swedish scientist explained after a careful survey, “that the entire character of this northern country has changed.”
Turning to Alaska, Professor Ahlmann estimates that the glaciers are retreating at the rate of 900 feet a year. Some of them have presented a unique sight for decades, their sheer drop into the water from high altitudes displaying a rare spectacle.
Meanwhile the people in Europe have again wondered at the lack of snow in the valleys. And it certainly was not a white Christmas for those who can remember the heavy snow falls last century.
Scientists believe that the melting of ice in the polar regions indicates a radical change in climatic conditions.”
World’s News (Sydney, NSW : 1901 – 1955), Saturday 4 March 1950,
