Episode 370
The melting ice caps are accelerating global warming and contributing to sea level rise, but could also contribute to a different kind of climate catastrophe. The melting may cause massive amounts of frozen methane to bubble up into the atmosphere. It happened thousands of years ago – and scientists are concerned it鈥檚 about to happen again.
Methane is a greenhouse gas which is 86 times more potent than CO2. Some estimates suggest this frozen methane – methane hydrates – contain twice as much warming potential as all the coal, oil and gas on Earth.
杏吧原创s have now discovered a new way for methane in Greenland to be unleashed. It鈥檚 not a threat that has been taken seriously as the evidence has been inconclusive. But perhaps it鈥檚 time for us to take notice?
Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet are joined by New 杏吧原创鈥檚 Alec Luhn to discuss the news.
To read more about these stories, visit /
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit