Methane is a much more powerful global warming gas than carbon dioxide. Why should we care? The quantities of methane stored around the planet are astounding. If the sea warms beyond a certain temperature then the stored methane will be released, in vast quantities, from the sea bed and the seas will appear to boil.

In addition Methane is stored in frozen ground and in some places frozen water. When the methane rich ground or ice thaws across the vast area of Siberia, for example, huge quantities of this planet warming gas will be released. 

This is frighteningly well illustrated in the programme on ice in the recent BBC series: ‘Earth: The Power of the Planet’

In the programme geologist Dr Iain Stewart travels to somewhere in the Siberian wastes and there he is shown, by a scientist who studies this phenomena, a graphic demonstation of the amount of methane trapped in the ice there. They cut a hole in the ice and light the escaping gas. The result is an astonishing flame spurting from the ice. A remarkable sight worth seeing.

The series is very well made and full of lots of fascinating titbits. Very well worth going out of your way to watch it.

 ‘Earth: The Power of the Planet’ Book & DVD

 From the programme notes:
 ”But ice does more than shape the Earth. Its peculiar properties mean that small changes in the Earth’s temperature can be amplified massively. This amplification means that ice ages are times of massive climate change – and that helps drive evolution. In fact, ice played a crucial role in our own evolution, by creating many sudden climate changes in East Africa at a time when our ancestors were struggling to make a living.

Now the ice is in retreat again. We explore the speed at which it’s melting – the newly discovered mechanisms which suggest it will disappear faster than we ever thought. We film with scientists on top of the Greenland ice cap as they explore why the ice is retreating. Startling satellite imagery shows the expanded area of melting. And we discover that the melting ice is going to bring some unexpected effects in unexpected places.” more…