There has never been so little ice in the Bering Strait for 5,500 years, according to a new US study...
New alarm in the Arctic sea! Last month, the arctic sea ice reached a new record low. The iced area has never been so small for a month of October...

First, Siberia has experienced extreme temperatures. Then, further west, in Svalbard, halfway between Norway and the North Pole, the thermometer displayed temperatures up to 10 ° C above seasonal norms for several days. These phenomena, which have been accompanied by extraordinary fires this year and an accelerated melting of glaciers and permafrost, worry those who live in the middle of this fragile ecosystem. At the forefront of global warming, they explain to us why what they see today should already concerns us all.

Only two plots north of Greenland and along Canada's northern islands are still covered with ice throughout the year in 2020, warns a study published on October 15 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Sadly, even these last areas of "eternal" ice are melting at twice the rate of the rest of the Arctic Ocean.

"The area of the Arctic sea ice in October will be the lowest on record and the growth rate of the sea ice is slower than normal," Rasmus Tonboe, an expert at DMI, told AFP. According to preliminary satellite data used by the institute, its area was only 6.5 million square kilometers large on October 27.

Satellites have been observing these areas very precisely since 1979, and the downward trend is clearly quickening in pace. For Mr. Tonboe, October set a "low record" unmatched in 41 years. If you check number for October 2020 alone, the ice cover shrunk by 8.2% compared with the last ten Octobers.

"With less ice on the sea, the sun is also warming the seawater for longer every year, resulting in warmer seas and less ice settling down. Winters get shorter and shorter, the ice doesn't have time to thickens as it did before, "Mr. Tonboe summed up.

The size of the sea ice had already recorded a very low level in September with its second smallest area ever recorded, after 2012. On September 8, it measured only 4.2 million kilometers, according to the researcher.

Mr Tonboe just came back from the longest international scientific expedition to the North pole. The Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) voyage lasted 389-day and was led by the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in Germany.
AWI is now issuing an urgent appeal to try to save the "disappearing" summer sea ice. We are now only seeing a "melted, thin, crumbly ice", and "surfaces of liquid water as far as the eye can see, up to the horizon line".

There has been less and less sea ice in the Arctic in the last 40 years, and it some maritime areas which used to be iced year long (such as Barent sea in the north of Norway) are now only covered for a small part of the year.

This ice melting opens up new maritime passages, which will play a growing role in international trade and stirs up greed for its potential riches. The region is indeed likely to contain 13% of oil reserves and 30% of undiscovered natural gas in the world.

What about the human impact in all of this?
“Global warming is a multiplier of the effects of natural variability”, specifies a researcher. The average rise in temperature implies that the natural heat episodes, controlled by the North Atlantic Oscillation, are stronger and longer. It is this mechanism which also explains why we will have, if we do nothing, more and stronger heat waves in Europe in the decades to come.

What do you think can be done to reverse this trend? Leave us a comment below.

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PRINT AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE
 
Don’t bother printing your booking tickets. You probably wont need them and find them transformed into a sweaty lump in your money belt weeks later.  Nowadays just showing your passport or ID card is enough for the hostess to find you in the database at the airline check-in counter. You can also show the QR code from the company on your mobile.
Take photos on your phone or save a copy of your important documents on your cloud so you can access it at anytime if needed.
 

DON’T WRAP YOUR LUGGAGE IN PLASTIC
 
Use protective luggage covers or just a secured clip instead of the wasteful shrink wrap machine. There are many options for keeping your luggage clean and firmly shut. 
 
USE A REEF FRIENDLY SUNSCREEN
 
Did you know that conventional sunscreen contains a chemical that destroys coral reefs and marine ecosystems? Its name is oxybenzone, and many sunscreens contain it. According to experts, approximately 14,000 tons of sunscreen end up in the oceans every year.
Search online or at your local dive center for reef safe options. They are now becoming increasingly affordable and easy to find.  (we have some onboard if you forget)

​SAY NO TO STRAWS
When you order your cocktail say “no straw”. Single use plastic straws have been the target of successful global campaigns raising awareness of how they can impact our oceans. 
If you don't like to sip your drink from the edge of the cup consider a reusable option like metal or bamboo. You can even buy collapsible straws that are easily stored in a small case connected to a keychain. 

BRING YOUR COFFEE CUP
 
Do you need the comfort of caffeine in the morning? Do you hate drinking your sunset mojito from disposable plastic cups? 
While many people will think to bring a reusable water bottle, most don't think about reusable hot beverage receptacles. An insulated thermos for your morning coffee is a great way to reduce waste and keep the drink piping hot until you're ready for your fix. Beach bars are notorious for going through hundreds of plastic cups in a night. You can do your part by having your own party tumbler which will keep your drink cold and covered from sand or other undesirable additions.
There's even an added bonus that some places will offer you a discount for bringing your own cup!
 
…. AND THINK ABOUT A MENSTRUAL CUP!
 
Ladies, we all know that week when the bathroom’s trash bin is particularly full. Have you ever tried the cup?
This revolutionary feminine hygiene product helps to reduce the rubbish you can produce during that special time of the month. You can wear it day or nights, for much longer than a tampon. It's also very comfortable and rarely leaks. 
Trying is adopting it! Even for diving, it is tested and approved.

A very popular subject of many marine biologists, the Octopus Vulgaris or common reef octopus, is a master of disguise.
The octopus is a mollusc belonging to the class of cephalopoda.
It's arms can grow to a whopping 1m in length and its mantle as long as 25cm.

This type of octopus can be found in the tropical and temperate waters of the the Eastern Atlantic, Mediterranean sea, the Pacific ocean and the coast of Africa.
It prefers shallow rocky bottoms or coastal coral reef in depths above 200m. Octopi will find themselves a shelter where they can minimize exposure and stay safe but will come out, mostly at night, to hunt. They usually move by crawling along the sea floor where it can protect its belly. They are also known to swim using a type of jet mechanism found in its mantle cavity. 

Octopi are solitary creatures with short life spans. They spend most of their young life eating and growing until they reach sexual maturity. At this time, they will metabolize muscle mass to make sperm and eggs and search for a mate. 
Mating can be very dangerous for the male. A female doesn't often refuse a male's advances but it is not uncommon for the female to change her mind and eat the male. To address this problem, males have a specially adapted mating arm that can deliver sperm into the female's mantle cavity from a safe distance.
The female will lay between 100 000 to 500 000 eggs which she will very rarely leave unattended for her 4-5 month brooding.  She will even stop eating to take care of them and will die shortly after they hatch. 

Studies show that they are extremely clever and resourceful. They have a much more complex nervous system than other mammals and most of their 500 million neurons are found in their arms. The have been taught to navigate mazes, problem solve and recognize visual clues to find the best way to get to a reward. Don't under estimate them !

The Common reef octopus can be found in Mergui Archipelago between other cephalopods and reef creatures. Diving in Myanmar offers a large marine biodiversity, a paradise for all divers !