“In mid-June, I was surprised to see snow still at sea level in Prince William Sound,” said U.S. Geological Survey glaciologist Bruce Molnia. “On the Juneau Icefield, there was still 20 feet of new snow on the surface of the Taku Glacier in late July. At Bering Glacier, a landslide I am studying, located at about 1,500 feet elevation, did not become snow free until early August.
“In general, the weather this summer was the worst [coldest/snowiest] I have seen in at least 20 years.”
Never before in the history of a research project dating back to 1946 had the Juneau Icefield witnessed the kind of snow buildup that came this year. It was similar on a lot of other glaciers too.
Whew. Crisis averted. And none too soon since “carbon taxes” would only drive the economy lower. Thanks to China and India global CO2 emissions are way up in spite of guilt-ridden Americans’ trying new light bulbs and other token fixes.
For most of us, this news is quite stunning, considering that the former VP had both invented the modern day internet AND had the backing of many Hollywood heavy-weights. Meteorologists, however, were less surprised.