Around year 2000 David Letterman included some fear-mongering comment about how the ice at the north pole had melted in the summer, for the first time in 30 million years, citing an agitprop piece in the NY Slimes. He included that in his monologue for four straight nights. On Friday, he finally noted that there was a retraction of sorts in the Slimes, noting that the melting is something that happens every year. The the Slimes included the unrebutted agitprop piece in their Sunday supplement. It’s nonsense.
True, ice in the polar sea has been melting on a regular basis in the summer. However, the extent and duration of melting has grown to the degree that allows the possibility of commercial traffic from Atlantic to Pacific, and competition with Russia over undersea ocean floor resources. If you click the link in my Comment #75, you will see the 4 bottom lines that are at my comment, and you can click them for more information, some of which (from “press release”) I have quoted below. The final report is due in Sept. 2018.
“The quality of the IPCC assessment strongly depends on the contribution made by Expert Reviewers from all over the world”, says Valérie Masson-Delmotte, Co-Chair of Working Group I. “We solicit experts to join us in this review effort, including early career scientists, as an opportunity to participate in the IPCC process and contribute directly to the preparation of the special report.”
All IPCC reports go through two stages of formal review. The first draft is evaluated by Expert Reviewers, before a second draft is reviewed by both governments and experts for final assessment. This comprehensive review process ensures that IPCC reports cover the most up to date scientific, technical and socio-economic findings, and are representative of a broad range of independent expertise from developed and developing countries.”