The Arctic average temperature has  increased by about 3˚ C - much more than the rest of the planet. This phenomenon is known as  'Arctic Temperature Amplification' and is thought to be caused by various reinforcing feedback loops. This CLD illustrate some of the more important ones.  The most important ones (R1 and R2) are affecting the amount of sunlight that is reflected back into space by ice and snow.  As ice and snow melt, more dark ocean and land surface is exposed absorbing the light, which then warms up the sea and land. This increased heat then warms up the air above it.  The loop (R3) illustrates that a grater area of exposed sea can be stirred up by winds causing waves which break up sea ice. This  exposes more water surface contributing further to the warming of the ocean.  As the atmosphere in the Arctic warms (R4), more water evaporates and is absorbed by it. Water vapor is a potent greenhouse gas, and  its presence in the atmosphere further causes  Arctic temperatures to rise.

According to The Guardian (30-06-2017) US President Donald Trump is trying to annul an existing ban on drilling for oil in the Arctic. However, a the self-reinforcing methane feedback loop, illustrated  here by a causal loop diagram, is likely to frustrate his intentions.  Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas that is about 150 times more potent than CO2 over a short time of a few years and 86 times more potent over a period of 20 years. It is leaking now from hotspots on the sea floor covering an area of about 200 000 km2 of the East Siberian Arctic Shelf according to estimates by the scientists Natalia Shakhova and Dr. Igor Semiletov.  These hotspots are growing exponentially and there is little doubt that much of the gas is reaching the  surface, forming the dangerous self-reinforcing feedback loop described. 

The Arctic average temperature has  increased by about 3˚ C - much more than the rest of the planet. This phenomenon is known as  'Arctic Temperature Amplification' and is thought to be caused by various reinforcing feedback loops. This CLD illustrate some of the more important ones.  The most important ones (R1 and R2) are affecting the amount of sunlight that is reflected back into space by ice and snow.  As ice and snow melt, more dark ocean and land surface is exposed absorbing the light, which then warms up the sea and land. This increased heat then warms up the air above it.  The loop (R3) illustrates that a grater area of exposed sea can be stirred up by winds causing waves which break up sea ice. This  exposes more water surface contributing further to the warming of the ocean.  As the atmosphere in the Arctic warms (R4), more water evaporates and is absorbed by it. Water vapor is a potent greenhouse gas, and  its presence in the atmosphere further causes  Arctic temperatures to rise.