ИСТИНА

The outcomes of the “Climate change and the cryosphere - Snow, water and permafrost in the Arctic” (SWIPA) project of AMAP, are presented. The SWIPA report gave an up-to-date assessment of the state of the Arctic cryosphere, including the Greenland ice sheet, mountain glaciers, sea and freshwater ice, permafrost and snow cover at the background of climate changes in the first decade of our century. The results of assessment reports show a rapid change of the Arctic climate. The last five years in the Arctic were the warmest over the entire observations. Glaciers and the Greenland ice sheet melt quicker compared to the previous decade. The sea ice cover area decreased (by 25-30%) recently. The snowcover area decreased by 18% since the mid-1960s. The temperatures in permafrost increased by almost 2°С during the past decades. Changes in the Arctic influence the planetary processes. Melting of the Greenland and glaciers contributes to a more rapid sea level rise than supposed before. Efficiency of the adaptation strategy can be increased by means of further studies of potential challenges and opportunities, the Arctic Council initiated the project “Adaptation Actions for a Changing Arctic” (AACA) under the AMAP. The AACA will provide valuable information on how these drivers of change may interact. AACA will cover three pilot regions: Barents Region, Baffin Bay and Davis Strait Region, and Bering, Chukchi and Beaufort Region. All three regions will cover both marine and terrestrial areas, and will be forward looking with a focus on 2030 and 2080.