Bucking the Trend

Polar bear, Ursus maritimus, sow with cub walking on multi-layer ice (freshwater pans formed over the years where the salt is squeezed out of the ice) on the Chuckchi Sea, off the National Petroleum Reserves, Alaska.

Jeff Pagati sampling the "Coro marl" (the white layer) at Murray Springs, Arizona. This highly distinct layer was deposited during the last ice age (from 40,000 to 15,000 years ago) when local conditions were wetter than today. The thin black mat overlaying it was laid down during the Younger Dryas 13,000 to 11,500 years ago. Fossils within the sediment can help date local changes and climate impacts.

The Athabasca Glacier in Canada in 1919 and rephotographed by Gary Braasch in 2005.

In McCamey, Texas, the wide open spaces previously populated only by nodding donkey oil pumps turn out to be suitable for wind turbines too. The state has the largest capacity and the fastest growth rate, wind-based generating capacity in the US.

There have been glaciers in Iceland for millions of years, but by the end of next century they all could be gone. This loss is essentially one of cultural identity for members of the Icelandic Glaciological Society, a group of volunteers that observes and documents Iceland’s melting namesake. There are more than 30 volunteers in all, ranging from sheepherders to geochemists, many of whose families have lived beside these glaciers for generations. Sheepherder Indriði Aðalsteinsson has volunteered with the Icelandic Glaciological Society for 23 years. He picks up a stone and puts it in his pocket every 10 meters to keep count. Last year, Kaldalón retreated by eight stones.

Emissions from a coal-fired power station in Nottinghamshire, UK.