Glacial Advances in Antarctic Climate Change Studies

Antarctica, which seemed to have largely escaped the global warming affecting the rest of the planet, is melting too, according to a study.

The new research, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, also provides the firmest proof to date that climate change at both poles is not the result of natural fluctuations.

"Our results demonstrate that human activities have already caused significant warming in both polar regions," said Alexey Karpechko, a professor at the University of East Anglia and a co-author of the study released Thursday.

Earlier investigations left no doubt that Earth's northern extremity has warmed at nearly twice the global average over the last century, causing a dramatic shrinking of sea ice and disrupting the region's ecosystems.

"However in Antarctica, such detection was so far precluded by insufficient data," said Karpechko.

The new study goes a long way toward filling that gap, and factoring out the causes.

Another piece of the puzzle...