Arctic Methane Release Fears

Dramatic and unprecedented plumes of methane – a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide – have been seen bubbling to the surface of the Arctic Ocean by scientists undertaking an extensive survey of the region.

The scale and volume of the methane release has astonished the head of the Russian research team who has been surveying the seabed of the East Siberian Arctic Shelf off northern Russia for nearly 20 years. .....read more from The Independent.

Methane Level Greenhouse Gas Fears

Scientists are increasingly concerned about rising levels of methane gas, which is around 20 times more powerful than carbon dioxide as far as its global warming potential is concerned. The frozen Arctic, which holds massive amounts of methane could be a ticking time bomb, as the ice melts releasing tonnes of the gas into the atmosphere, causing further warming, and further melting of the ice and so on..