Video: North Pole shrinks to record levels, could be gone in 4 years

  This animation shows the 2012 time-series of ice extent. The black area represents the daily average (median) sea ice from 1979-2000. Layered over are the daily satellite measurements from January 1 — September 14, 2012. A rapid melt begins in July, whereby the 2012 ice extents fall far below the historical average.   This …

World scientists – we can’t raise the temperature by more than two degrees Celsius

The official position of planet Earth at the moment is that we can’t raise the temperature more than two degrees Celsius. Some context: So far, we’ve raised the average temperature of the planet just under 0.8 degrees Celsius, and that has caused far more damage than most scientists expected. (A third of summer sea ice …

Low-tech ways to make ice cream

Here are a few of our favorite alternative ice cream-making apparatuses, ranging from low — to even lower — tech:   #1 A plastic Ziploc bag inside a larger bag filled with ice and rock salt applies the standard equation — freezing temperature plus agitation for 5 minutes — and wins the prize for the most elegantly …

MESSENGER sends first data back to Earth – uncovers ice on Mercury

For several years scientists have been begging to test their theories about Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun. You see, the radar signals come back showing ice exists on the planet, but how could ice exist on a planet so incredibly hot? NASA sent the spacecraft MESSENGER to orbit the planet and figure the …

The Army’s secret Arctic underground nuclear base in Greenland

No, this picture doesn’t show a black and white image of the rebel base on the ice planet Hoth. It’s part of a semi-secret, nuclear-powered U.S. Army base that was built under the Greenland ice cap only 800 miles from the North Pole. The base was officially built to conduct scientific research but the real …

Amsterdam’s famous canals are frozen – time to lace up those ice skates!

For the second time in three years, Amsterdam’s famous canals have frozen. You know what that means? It’s time to lace up the ice skates. After temperatures dropped to 14 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 10 degrees Celsius) this past weekend, Dutch young and old flocked to the city’s famous waterways, gliding across the frozen surfaces on …

Amsterdam's famous canals are frozen – time to lace up those ice skates!

For the second time in three years, Amsterdam’s famous canals have frozen. You know what that means? It’s time to lace up the ice skates. After temperatures dropped to 14 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 10 degrees Celsius) this past weekend, Dutch young and old flocked to the city’s famous waterways, gliding across the frozen surfaces on …