Arctic Russia

ice cores from antarctic do not suggest climate catastrophe

We have seen this kind of opinion before, embedded deep in the Russian Academy of Sciences and here it is again.  This time Institute of Geography RAS Academician Vladimir Kotlyakovo has obtained ice-core data from Mount Erebus which, so the claim is made, shows that (’В прошлом цикл.е, 100 тысяч лет назад, когда никакой промышленности не существовало, температура была даже на полтора градуса выше, чем сейчас. Поэтому, уверен, потепление к апокалипсису не ведёт’) – i.e., that within the greatest of the earth’s climate cycles, which takes place over 100 thousand years, the temperature was higher than now, even though no industry existed.  Therefore we should not expect the apocalypse.  The author also makes the claim that methane and carbon dioxide levels follow temperature and do not preceed it.

There are also a couple of other interesting sections.  First, note the idea that the struggle between nations in the Arctic is influenced by the presence of hydrocarbons there (not the melting ice).  Second, the Academician suggests that the Antarctic may go the same way, which suggests that the really serious players will be those that can work in extremely hostile conditions. 

Perhaps this is why Chilingarov is calling for a new research station and a new ice-breaker and the head of rosneft says that investors in the Arctic need to proceed with caution.