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Sea ice increases in Antarctica do not make up for the accelerated Arctic sea ice loss of the last decades, a new NASA study finds.
As a whole, the planet has been shedding sea ice at an average annual rate of 13,500 square miles since 1979, the equivalent of losing an area of sea ice larger than the state of Maryland every year.
“Even though Antarctic sea ice reached a new record maximum this past September, global sea ice is still decreasing,” said Claire Parkinson, author of the study and climate scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. “That's because the decreases in Arctic sea ice far exceed the increases in Antarctic sea ice.”
Parkinson used microwave data collected by NASA and Department of Defense satellites for her study, which was published last December in the Journal of Climate.
She added Arctic and Antarctic sea ice extents month by month from November 1978 to December 2013 to determine the global ice extent for each month.
Her analysis shows that over the 35-year period, the trend in ice extents was downward in all months of the year, even those corresponding to the Arctic and Antarctic sea ice maximum extents.
Furthermore, the global ice decrease has accelerated: in the first half of the record (1979-96), the sea ice loss was about 8,300 square miles per year.
This rate more than doubled for the second half of the period (1996 to 2013), when there was an average loss of 19,500 square miles per year – an average yearly loss larger than the states of Vermont and New Hampshire combined.
“This doesn't mean the sea ice loss will continue to accelerate,” Parkinson said. “After all, there are limits. For instance, once all the Arctic ice is gone in the summer, the Arctic summertime ice loss can't accelerate any further.”
Sea ice has diminished in almost all regions of the Arctic, whereas the sea ice increases in the Antarctic are less widespread geographically.
Although the sea ice cover expanded in most of the Southern Ocean between 1979 and 2013, it decreased substantially in the Bellingshausen and Amundsen seas.
These two seas are close to the Antarctic Peninsula, a region that has warmed significantly over the last decades.
In her study, Parkinson also shows that the annual cycle of global ice extents is more similar to the annual cycle of the Antarctic ice than the Arctic ice.
The global minimum ice extent occurs in February of each year, as does the Antarctic minimum extent, and the global maximum sea ice extent occurs in either October or November, one or two months after the Antarctic maximum.
This contrasts with the Arctic minimum occurring in September and the Arctic maximum occurring in March. Averaged over the 35 years of the satellite record, the planet's monthly ice extents range from a minimum of 7.03 million square miles in February to a maximum of 10.27 million square miles in November.
“One of the reasons people care about sea ice decreases is that sea ice is highly reflective whereas the liquid ocean is very absorptive,” Parkinson said. “So when the area of sea ice coverage is reduced, there is a smaller sea ice area reflecting the sun's radiation back to space. This means more retention of the sun's radiation within the Earth system and further heating.”
Parkinson doesn't find it likely that the Antarctic sea ice expansion will accelerate and overturn the global sea ice negative trend in the future.
“I think that the expectation is that, if anything, in the long-term the Antarctic sea ice growth is more likely to slow down or even reverse,” she said.
Parkinson calculated and published the global results after witnessing the public's confusion about whether Antarctic sea ice gain might be canceling out Arctic sea ice loss.
“When I give public lectures or talk with random people interested in the topic, often somebody will say something in the order of 'well, the ice is decreasing in the Arctic but it's increasing in the Antarctic, so don't they cancel out?'” Parkinson said. “The answer is no, they don't cancel out.”
LAKEPORT, Calif. – In Lake County's third annual Mock Trial Competition in Lakeport on Thursday, Middletown High School team made it a three-peat.
The team beat out rival Upper Lake High in the competition, which was held in Judge Stephen Hedstrom's Department 4 courtroom on the fourth floor of the Lake County Courthouse.
As in past years, the event was held on a court holiday, giving the students exclusive access to the court facilities.
The two teams took turns in the morning and afternoon sessions presenting the prosecution and defense in the case People v. Shem.
The case brief explains that Evan Shem – a student studying for his master’s of fine arts degree at Hamiltonia University – is charged with one felony count of larceny for stealing a painting from wealthy art collector Marty McCulloch, for whom Shem was working as an intern.
Shem, who was a docent at McCulloch's art gallery and had a knack for painting copies of famous works of art, is alleged to have stolen the painting with the intent to replace it with a fake.
The prosecution alleged that Shem then planned to sell the painting to pay off his student debt and finance the remainder of his degree work.
The teams gave opening and closing arguments, presented evidence and cross-examined witnesses.
Students portrayed prosecution and defense attorneys, witnesses, the accused, the bailiff and even a court sketch artist.
Each session of the competition started out with the two teams taking turns at arguing in favor of a pretrial motion to suppress evidence.
The motion issue centered on the US Constitution's Fourth Amendment protection against unlawful search and seizure, and whether evidence found in a storage cabinet by a police detective would be admissible.
In the morning session, Middletown High School – at that point representing the defense – successfully argued for having the evidence suppressed, while Upper Lake High School's motion to suppress the evidence in the afternoon session was denied by Hedstrom.
Following Middletown's defense of Shem against Upper Lake's prosecution in the morning session, Hedstrom found that there was a question as to whether or not a crime actually occurred, finding Shem not guilty.
When Upper Lake tried to defend Shem from Middletown's prosecution in the afternoon, Hedstrom concluded that a crime had occurred, and that Shem had the motive, opportunity and method to carry it out, finding Shem guilty of the charge.
Following the competitive sessions, Hedstrom – who also presided over the competition last year – lauded the students for “an incredible performance.”
“You did really, really well,” he said, adding, “I think you for this experience.”
Hedstrom also gave the teams critiques, and took time out with them after the competition to discuss their performances.
In addition to Middletown High's win, individual students received awards for their efforts.
Individual awards went to Parker Spadaro, outstanding defense attorney; Donald Elder, outstanding bailiff; Mercedes De los Santos, outstanding defense attorney; Gracie Pachie, outstanding prosecuting attorney; Aiden Isaia, outstanding defense witness; and Hannah Flynn, outstanding prosecution witness.
Middletown's team will now prepare to head to the 34th annual California Mock Trial Finals, set to take place March 20 to 22 in Riverside.
The team will need financial assistance in order to make the trip.
One local group stepping up to help kick off fundraising is Lake County Friends of Mendocino College, which is providing $100 toward travel expenses, according to organization member Wilda Shock.
TEAM ROSTERS
Middletown High School
Donald Elder, Asia Firebaugh, Hannah Flynn, Soledad Garcia, Connor Gill, Rachel Harvey, Aiden Isaia, Jonathon Nance, Alixe Olson, Gracie Pachie, Gary Pickrell III, Noah Schenck, Audrey Showen, Trevor Smith, Parker Spadaro
Upper Lake High School
Mercedes De los Santos, Emily Dunn, Rhianna Eby, Megan Franco, Camden Goetjen, Haley Hunter, Christopher Johnson, Alexander Maupin, Isaiah McBee, Cristal Nieves, Indica Ramos, Valeria Robles, Isabel Rorabaugh, Adrianna Saldana, Steven Stump, Darren Swaney, Lyndsay Wade
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Lakeport Unified board approves resolution to sell bonds, establishes oversight committee membership
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Unified School District Board of Trustees on Thursday approved moving forward with a multimillion dollar bond sale in order to pursue a district modernization plan.
In November, district voters approved the $17 million Measure T bond with a 65.9 percent yes vote, as Lake County News has reported.
The bond proceeds will be used for upgrading buildings, creating 21st century classrooms, replacing portables, renovating Westshore Pool, constructing a new library/media center at the Terrace Middle School, constructing a food service dining area for high school students, making Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility upgrades, and improving playground equipment and sports fields, among other projects.
The resolution the board members approved Thursday authorized the issuance and sale of the first series of general obligation bonds, with the amount not to exceed $6 million.
In a brief presentation, bond consultant Greg Isom of Walnut Creek-based Isom Advisors congratulated the district on its success in passing the bond measure and led board members through the next steps.
He explained that the resolution and bond purchase agreement have lots of blanks in them.
“You have to approve this shell of a document and over the next month and a half it all gets filled in,” he said.
The next important step comes next week, on Feb. 17, when the bonds will be rated and given a credit score, Isom said.
He said he hopes that Superintendent Erin Smith-Hagberg and Linda Slockbower, the district business manager, will make the trip down to San Francisco to help make the case for good bond ratings, noting that face-to-face meetings with the individuals doing the ratings help.
Once the district gets a rating, depending on what it is there will need to be a determination to see if they will pursue insurance to push the ratings higher, Isom said.
Isom said the majority of school districts have an “A+” rating, and the district may want to buy insurance to get into the “AA” category.
Once the ratings are done, the information about the bonds will be marketed nationwide to banks, hedge funds and insurance companies, he said.
The bonds will be pre-priced on March 18, at which time Isom said they will have a conference call to discuss the current state of the market and lock in the interest rate. The day after that, the bonds will be placed on the market and sold.
Once the bond's preliminary official statement is finalized, the district should have about $6 million in its building fund, Isom said.
The board unanimously approved the resolution approving the bond issuance and sale.
Board members followed up by considering and approving a list of community members to serve on the Measure T Citizens Bond Oversight Committee.
Based on California Education Code, the committee must have at least seven members to help oversee how the bond proceeds are spent.
Members must include parents of students attending schools within the district, a parent actively involved in an organization supporting the district, a business representative, a taxpayer organization and senior citizen actively involved in a senior organization.
Smith-Hagberg took to the board what Board President Phil Kirby called a “rather impressive” list of nine community members wanting to serve.
Oversight committee applicants included Dan Buffalo, Dan Camacho, Jennifer Hanson, Judy Luchsinger Mann, Traci Champion Meade, Larry Powers, Karyn Rasmussen, Dennis Rollins and Nelson Strasser.
The board unanimously approved all nine applicants to serve on the committee.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Special Districts and the University of California Master Gardeners of Lake County are working together to provide three free workshops titled “Gardening in harmony with local conditions and resources.”
A recent study by UC Berkeley researcher Lynn Ingram and her colleague Scott Stine from California State University, East Bay found that when looking at geological time spans, extended droughts have been the norm for most of California – not the exception – and that the last 150 years have been unusually wet.
With the possibility that the recent drought may not be over, local residents need to adapt gardening practices to the environment and stop following the New England model of what a beautiful garden should look like, according to Special Districts. Once that concept is understood, the details of its implementation are easy.
UC Lake County Master Gardeners will show participants how to have an aesthetically pleasing, low water use, low maintenance garden that is in harmony with local climate and resources, and provides habitat for native pollinators and beneficial insect species, thereby greatly reducing not just water use but the need for pest and disease control.
Learn what and when to plant, how and when to irrigate, sources for suitable plants, seeds, soil, compost and more.
Join them for one of these informative talks coming up on Saturday mornings in three convenient locations around the county:
– 10 a.m. to noon, Feb. 21: The Little Red School House, 15780 Bottle Rock Road, Cobb.
– 10 a.m. to noon, Feb. 28: Lucerne Alpine Senior Center, 3985 Country Club Drive.
– 10 a.m. to noon, March 7: Lakeport Senior Center, 527 Konocti Ave.
For more information, contact Jan Coppinger at Special Districts, 707-263-0119.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – A Finley man accused of killing his cousin made his first appearance in court on Wednesday.
Salvador Flores Guzman, 69, appeared for arraignment in Lake County Superior Court before a visiting judge on Wednesday morning. Local judges have recused themselves from the case due to conflicts.
Guzman is facing murder and several other felony charges for the Sunday night killing of 78-year-old Manuel Guzman of Kelseyville.
The weapons in the case are alleged to be a vehicle and a knife, according to court records.
Guzman did not enter a plea during the arraignment. Attorney Komnith Moth was appointed to represent him.
On Sunday night sheriff’s deputies responded to the area of Stone Drive near Scully Packing Co. in Finley on the report of a man lying outside of a vehicle, according to a report issued earlier this week by Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Brooks said deputies found Manuel Guzman's body lying near his pickup truck, which appeared to have been in a crash.
He'd suffered sharp force injuries to his chest and abdomen, and sheriff's detectives concluded that his pickup may have been forced off the road by another vehicle, Brooks reported.
Brooks said the sheriff's office investigation found that Manuel Guzman had been seen leaving Konocti Vista Casino in his pickup at approximately 9:15 p.m. Sunday, about an hour before his body was found.
Working with casino personnel, detectives were able to focus in on Salvador Guzman, who Brooks said was arrested Monday afternoon at Lakeside County Park.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff filed the criminal case against Salvador Guzman and represented the District Attorney’s Office at the Wednesday arraignment.
The charges against Salvador Guzman include murder, with special allegations of inflicting great bodily injury on Manuel Guzman, lying in wait and use of a deadly weapon, specifically, a knife; assault with a deadly weapon – a knife – and a special allegation of inflicting great bodily injury on a person age 70 or older; and assault with a deadly weapon, a vehicle.
Hinchcliff said the special allegation of lying in wait makes Manuel Guzman's murder a capital offense.
If convicted of the crimes, Salvador Guzman could face life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty, although Hinchcliff said the District Attorney's Office is unlikely to pursue the latter.
At Hinchcliff's request, the judge agreed to hold Salvador Guzman without bail.
The case has been continued until March 6, at which time Salvador Guzman is expected to enter a plea and the preliminary hearing date will be set, Hinchcliff said.
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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Authorities have arrested a Finley man for the murder of his cousin.
Salvador Flores Guzman, 69, was taken into custody on Monday afternoon, according to Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Salvador Guzman is charged with the murder of 78-year-old Manuel Guzman of Kelseyville, Brooks said.
Brooks said sheriff's deputies responded to the area of Stone Drive near Scully Packing Co. in Finley at around 10:15 p.m. Sunday on the report of a male lying outside of a vehicle.
When deputies arrived they found a deceased male lying on the ground outside of a pickup truck, which appeared to have been involved in some type of accident, Brooks said.
He said that as deputies were checking the decedent, they found what appeared to be sharp force injuries to the man's chest and abdomen.
Sheriff’s detectives and crime scene personnel subsequently responded to the scene. Brooks said detectives investigated the case throughout the night and the following day.
Detectives were able to identify the decedent as Manuel Guzman. Based on the damage to Guzman’s vehicle, detectives believed he was possibly forced off the roadway by another vehicle, Brooks said.
Brooks said detectives discovered that Manuel Guzman had left Konocti Vista Casino in his pickup at approximately 9:15 p.m. Sunday.
With the assistance of casino personnel, detectives were able to develop information about a subject who may have been involved, along with a vehicle description, Brooks said.
Brooks said that individual believed to have been involved in Manuel Guzman's death was identified as Salvador Guzman.
At 4:15 p.m. Monday the sheriff’s office received information that Salvador Guzman was at Lakeside County Park in his vehicle, according to Brooks.
Sheriff’s deputies and detectives responded to the park, where they located Salvador Guzman and placed him under arrest for the murder of Manuel Guzman, Brooks said.
Guzman was booked into the Lake County Jail on Tuesday morning on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and murder, according to his booking sheet.
He currently remains in custody at the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility without bail, Brooks said.
“I am greatly appreciative of the hard work and efforts of both Lake County Sheriff's Office personnel, and the staff at Konocti Vista Casino,” said Sheriff Brian Martin. “Their cooperative efforts led to a quick resolution in this investigation.”