Climate change is happening at a really fast pace. One of the affected areas is the Arctic and the Arctic life. Climate change is the change in weather patterns over a long period of time caused by global warming. Global warming is a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth 's atmosphere generally attributed to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide and other pollutants. Ever since the industrial revolution, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased drastically. The large amount of carbon dioxide was produced by human activities such as burning gases, woods, and burning coal. Clearing forests also releases large amounts of carbon dioxide. Worldwide deforestation means that we don’t …show more content…
Arctic ice reflects 80 percent of the sunlight back into space. As sea ice melts there will be more sunlight hit the ocean which increase the temperature of the ocean and cause raise of sea level. Satellite observations show that Arctic sea ice concentrations have significantly decreased over the last 25 years. Submarine observations also suggest that the Arctic ice pack has thinned dramatically in the last 20 to 30 years. As the sea ice melts the sea level increase. Sea level is now rising by 3.1mm per year. At this pace, more than 2.5 m sea level rise by 2040. How does climate change affect Arctic animals? Climate change affects Arctic animals drastically by destroying their living habitat and food sources. Polar bears are having a hard time finding food because the ice caps are melting. They use the ice to rest on while hunting for seals, but since there is less ice it’s causing the polar bears to drown from exhaustion. Walruses can eat up to 200 pounds of clams each day. Clams are usually found near the continental shelf but with ice caps melting it is getting harder for walruses to find