Nick Sundt's blog

Just days after Arctic sea ice receded to the third lowest extent on record, forcing thousands of walruses ashore, researchers flying along the Alaska coast stumbled upon a grisly scene: 100 to 200 walrus carcasses along the shoreline of Icy Cape, southwest of Barrow.

 With Arctic sea ice apparently reaching its annual minimum extent -- the third lowest on record -- there is growing evidence of impacts within the Arctic and beyond.

For the second month in a row, global ocean surface temperatures are the warmest on record. 

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) today (10 September 2009) released a brief report assessing the economic costs of climate change in the U.S., concluding that "every region in the country will confront large costs from climate change in the form of damages to infrastructure, diminished public heath, and threats to vital industries employing millions of Americans." 

According to a USGS press release September Science Picks -- Hot News about Cool Science (2 Sep 2009), "Climate change may affect critical water resources that support prey for 75 migratory bird species in the Great Basin."

A new WWF report reveals more than 350 new species – such as a “flying frog” and a 100 million-year old gecko – that have been discovered in the Eastern Himalayas, a biological treasure trove now threatened by climate change.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on 19 June 2009 released an analysis (also available as PDF file)concluding that the cap-and-trade program currently being considered by the U.S. House of Representatives would by 2020 cost an average of $175 per household annually. Representing 0.2 percent of the average households’ after-tax income, the estimate falls far below the inflated estimates made by opponents of H.R.

The ABC News Now program Nature's Edge on 26 May featured three very good segments on the impacts of climate change on ecosystems and wildlife – and the scientists who study them.  For each one you must sit through a brief ad (15-20 seconds), but it is worth the wait.