Arctic ice loss tied to growing wave sizes

Quartz : For the first time in recorded history, waves in the Arctic are reaching heights of 5 m. Jim Thomson of the University of Washington and his colleagues believe the increase in wave heights is directly related to the retreat of sea ice. Each summer, the polar ice cap shrinks. Whereas it used to recede only 100 km/yr, it now recedes thousands of kilometers. The larger areas of open water allow wind-driven swells to form and reach new heights. It is also possible that the swells, which carry a lot of energy, may accelerate ice loss when they hit the ice cap. Another potential problem is that the foaming from large breaking waves traps more carbon dioxide in the water, the effect of which on ocean chemistry is still unknown. Large waves during storms may also have a major impact on the growing trans-Arctic shipping industry: Storms caused three-fourths of global shipping losses in 2013, and ship losses in the Arctic have already increased from an average of 7 between 2002 and 2007 to an average of 45 between 2009 and 2013.