Use site to learn about global warming

An Oct. 25 letter suggested “Global warming problem doesn't exist” based, in part, on data from the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado. The letter claimed that it showed global warming is not happening because the ice cover over the Arctic Ocean has increased by 409,000 square miles over the last two years.

That argument was misleading. When I looked at the Web site, www.nsidc.org, it reported that the 2009 ice cover for September was the third-lowest ice cover on record. The cover was 649,000 square miles below the 1979 to 2000 September average. In addition, only 19 percent of the ice was more than two years old - the lowest on record.

The center's site further reports that arctic sea ice is now declining, on average, by 11.2 percent per decade. As many leading scientists have warned us, the Arctic Ocean could be ice free in the coming decades, causing potentially catastrophic climatic changes.

As a retired high school science teacher, this Web site is a great educational opportunity for today's students to learn about one of the most important uses of math and science: namely, research to understand our global climate, how humans are changing it and what we can do to reduce our impact and achieve sustainability.

Elwood Garlock

Cedar Rapids