‘Albedo’ is a scientific word for reflectivity. As this diagram shows (above), the Arctic sea-ice, glaciers and ice sheets reflect a lot more of the sun’s heat than bare earth or ocean surface, and thus have a cooling effect on the planet.
Temperature variants between different seas create ocean currents which affect temperatures and climate all over the world. Low Arctic temperatures, and the effect of ice on the temperature exchange between air and ocean, play a vital role in this complex process. Major changes in temperature or in water movement (e.g. from the melting of the Greenland ice-sheet) could have serious knock-on effects around the world (see map below).
