Arctic Low

For the second consecutive winter Arctic sea ice has failed to re-form sufficiently to compensate for the unprecedented melting of recent summers, arousing fears that the Arctic may have reached a crucial tipping point far earlier than predicted.

Meanwhile, the BBC reports that CO2 levels in the atmosphere have reached a record high: 381 parts per million -- 100 ppm higher than pre-industrial levels. The rate of increase for 2005 was an alarming 2.6 ppm, or about double the rate 30 years ago.