Highest Temperature in Arctic Region

• 18 Dec 2021

World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed that Verkhoyansk, a Siberian town, experienced a temperature of 38⁰C, the highest ever recorded in the Arctic region.

• It indicates the gradual warming of the Arctic region due to climate change.
• Arctic region is warming at twice the rate than the rest of the world, mainly because of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.
• The increased rate of warming is because of a phenomenon known as Arctic amplification which refers to the process in which the melting ice hastens the process of warming by exposing areas that are not good at reflecting back heat into the atmosphere.
• This creates a cycle between melting ice and rising temperatures, amplifying the impact of warming.