Climate changement: Greenland may lose its ice

Moreover, even the literal translation of the name "Gruen Land" in Scandinavian language means "green earth" and, according to the researchers, the long stretches of ice are gradually withdrawing with a slow but progressive change that will make the island Arctic increasingly hospitable. The fate of Greenland seems to be written as an omen in his own name chosen by the first settlers to encourage urbanization. Even today, however, population numbers are very low and too small compared to the size of the territory is so true that, politically, depends on denmark although for some years is experiencing an early form of autonomy. What is certain is that with a more friendly, perhaps with green fields and hills instead of the immense arctic desert, could be a new destination for the inhabitants of northern Europe. One figure is emblematic to witness the ongoing climate change: at the moment there are only four types of native trees and shrubs, but by the end of the century could become 400. To better study the progess of climate change, NASA scientists have developed a robot not unlike those who are sent into space in order to gather data and better understand the dynamics that affect the Greenland ice sheet on the island. This autonomous robot and powered by solar energy, it carries a radar useful for studying the accumulation of snow on the ground and snow deposits that will then be repertati and analyzed. All of these studies are made in the summer because the sun never sets below the horizon during the Arctic summer and the robot can work at any time and for longer, certainly collecting more data than it would be able to collect a human being on a snowmobile.