Amplifiers: Ice-Reflectivity Feedback
Ice-free surfaces tend to absorb more solar energy than ice-covered surfaces. Therefore, snow and ice cover have a cooling effect on the Earth. If global warming reduces the global snow and ice cover, the warming will be enhanced because more solar energy will be absorbed. This ice-reflectivity feedback does not operate in polar regions during the winter, when it is always dark or the Sun is very low in the sky.
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Ice-covered surfaces reflect more solar energy than ice-free surfaces. If global warming reduces global snow and ice cover, the warming will be enhanced because more solar energy will be absorbed.
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