Yesterday, scientists released an updated Arctic report card. The report, issued annually, is a way of updating the State of the Arctic Report issued in 2006. With the intention of “presenting clear, reliable and concise information on recent observations of environmental conditions in the Arctic, relative to historical time series records,” the results are staggering. Autumn air temperatures in the Arctic are at a record 9 degrees Fahrenheit above normal. Last year, researchers witnessed the largest loss of sea ice on record. It’s important to note that an increase in radiation from the sun only accounts for about 10 percent of global warming. Stated James Overland, an oceanographer at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle “you can’t use solar to say that greenhouse gases are not a major factor.”

Click here for the full article on the report via RedOrbit, and here for the actual report, which sections on Atmosphere, Ocean, Sea Ice, Biology, Greenland and Land.