The Chilly State of the Climate’s Future: Review of “Thin Ice”

With increased media coverage about carbon footprints, rising temperatures and extreme weather, issues regarding climate change are attracting an increasing amount of attention. Despite the claim that climate change needs to be addressed by the global population, however, scientists have been accused of fabricating global warming in recent years. Thin Ice: The Inside Story of Climate Science, produced by a team of internationally acclaimed scientists at Oxford and Victoria University in New Zealand along with DOX Productions, examines accusations against scientists that end up causing public confusion. Led by the geologist Simon Lamb and producer David Sington, the filmmakers attempt to reveal to the public the whats, whys, wheres and hows of climate science.

In order to show real scientists flourishing in their natural habitat — computer modelling in an office, collecting seawater from the Southern Ocean, or taking atmosphere and ice measurements across all of the continents — Lamb and his team sought to communicate what climate scientists measure, why they measure it and the implications. With Lamb narrating from behind the camera and scientists speaking with passion and enthusiasm about their work, the film often evoked a one-on-one conversation between the audience and a friend who just happened to have a microscope on the table.

Covering a wide range of topics and exploring the question of what we know about the Earth’s past and current climate, the 73-minute documentary explores how the human race is affecting Earth for the future. Interviews with scientists globally showed the variation in the effects of climate change and the spatial distribution, such as the rapid melting of Arctic Ice and the implications for the resultant rise in global sea level. For a geologist like me, this film was interesting due to its fixation on the science and research behind popular climate issues. I was reminded of the lectures I attended as an undergraduate with some of the Oxford filmmakers. Similarly, the take-home message, as in these classes, was not optimistic. By burning fossil fuels, people are causing long-term effects on the global climate which we can measure, affecting us as a population within the near future. Although the extent and rate of change cannot always be quantified, the fact that we need to make changes can no longer be ignored.

However, the film primarily targeted a general audience. It demonstrated the real measurements and information behind climate change stories in the media. Concluding the clarification behind climate science, the film stressed the role of the governments and the United Nations in order to start addressing these problems. Rather than discrediting the information provided by scientists, leaving the problem for other people or future generations to tackle, people should focus on finding solutions to these serious problems. As the film shows, at this point, ignorance really is no excuse.

To view the film, visit http://thiniceclimate.org/.