The mixing of fresh and saline water - a major positive feedback loop in the Arctic

Some things are worth repeating until people get this important message.In fact, I can't think of anything MORE important than this part from , perhaps, the methane rising to the surface above Siberia.

See from the map just how close Novaya Zemlya, where this is happening, is.

'Tipping point' risk for Arctic hotspot

I am reading this article from the BBC because it is so important as it confirms the conclusions Margo and I have reached by looking at solid data on the Arctic.

A rapid climate shift under way in the Barents Sea could spread to other Arctic regions, scientists warn.

The Barents Sea is said to be at a tipping point, changing from an Arctic climate to an Atlantic climate as the water gets warmer.

In what may be a first the BBC I acknowledging a positive feedback loop

In what’s known as a feedback loop - the more the layers mix, the warmer the surface gets. And the warmer the surface gets, the more the waters mix.

However, they place the problem a whole decade away

So it’s now only a matter of time, the researchers say, before this section of the Arctic effectively becomes part of the Atlantic. It could happen in as little as a decade, they warn

Here is the Barents Sea. I got it mixed up with the Barents Strait near Alaska

We are in high-winter in the Arctic and you can see that the Barents Sea is ice-free - not in a decade but right now.

Sea temperatures NOW - not in a decade are up to 0 deg C with a couple of warm areas that are up to 16 deg C.

Compare that with 17 deg. C in Cook Strait, New Zealand in SUMMER, in the context of a marine heatwave!

The following shows the high degree of mixing of salt and fresh water in the Arctic - about 35% for the Barents Sea.