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Why Greenland? Remote but resource-rich island occupies a key position in a warming world

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Why Greenland? Remote but resource-rich island occupies a key position in a warming world
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Why Greenland? Remote but resource-rich island occupies a key position in a warming world

2025-01-08 06:39 Last Updated At:06:41

Remote, icy and mostly pristine, Greenland plays an outsized role in the daily weather experienced by billions of people and in the climate changes taking shape all over the planet.

Greenland is where climate change, scarce resources, tense geopolitics and new trade patterns all intersect, said Ohio University security and environment professor Geoff Dabelko.

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The plane carrying Donald Trump Jr., departs from the airport in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

The plane carrying Donald Trump Jr., departs from the airport in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Donald Trump Jr., center, smiles after arriving in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Donald Trump Jr., center, smiles after arriving in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

FILE - An iceberg floats in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 12, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - An iceberg floats in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 12, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Large icebergs float away as the sun rises near Kulusuk, Greenland, on Aug. 16, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - Large icebergs float away as the sun rises near Kulusuk, Greenland, on Aug. 16, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - Two groups from the Poseidon Expeditions tour company look at a glacier in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 7, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Two groups from the Poseidon Expeditions tour company look at a glacier in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 7, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Small pieces of ice float in the water in Nuuk Fjord, Greenland, on June 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Keith Virgo, File)

FILE - Small pieces of ice float in the water in Nuuk Fjord, Greenland, on June 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Keith Virgo, File)

FILE - A boat navigates large icebergs near the town of Kulusuk, in eastern Greenland, on Aug. 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - A boat navigates large icebergs near the town of Kulusuk, in eastern Greenland, on Aug. 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

The world's largest island is now "central to the geopolitical, geoeconomic competition in many ways," partly because of climate change, Dabelko said.

Since his first term in office, President-elect Donald Trump has expressed interest in acquiring Greenland, which is a semiautonomous territory of Denmark, a longtime U.S. ally and a founding member of NATO. It is also home to a large U.S. military base.

Think of Greenland as an open refrigerator door or thermostat for a warming world, and it's in a region that is warming four times faster than the rest of the globe, said New York University climate scientist David Holland.

Locked inside are valuable rare earth minerals needed for telecommunications, as well as uranium, billions of untapped barrels of oil and a vast supply of natural gas that used to be inaccessible but is becoming less so.

Many of the same minerals are currently being supplied mostly by China, so other countries such as the United States are interested, Dabelko said. Three years ago, the Denmark government suspended oil development offshore from the territory of 57,000 people.

But more than the oil, gas or minerals, there's ice — a "ridiculous” amount, said climate scientist Eric Rignot of the University of California, Irvine.

If that ice melts, it would reshape coastlines across the globe and potentially shift weather patterns in such a dramatic manner that the threat was the basis of a Hollywood disaster movie. Greenland holds enough ice that if it all melts, the world's seas would rise by 24 feet (7.4 meters). Nearly a foot of that is so-called zombie ice, already doomed to melt no matter what happens, a 2022 study found.

Since 1992, Greenland has lost about 182 billion tons (169 billion metric tons) of ice each year, with losses hitting 489 billion tons a year (444 billion metric tons) in 2019.

Greenland will be “a key focus point” through the 21st century because of the effect its melting ice sheet will have on sea levels, said Mark Serreze, director of the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colorado. "It will likely become a bigger contributor in the future.”

That impact is “perhaps unstoppable,” NYU's Holland said.

Greenland also serves as the engine and on/off switch for a key ocean current that influences Earth's climate in many ways, including hurricane and winter storm activity. It's called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, and it's slowing down because more fresh water is being dumped into the ocean by melting ice in Greenland, Serreze said.

A shutdown of the AMOC conveyor belt is a much-feared climate tipping point that could plunge Europe and parts of North America into prolonged freezes, a scenario depicted in the 2004 movie “The Day After Tomorrow.”

“If this global current system were to slow substantially or even collapse altogether — as we know it has done in the past — normal temperature and precipitation patterns around the globe would change drastically,” said climate scientist Jennifer Francis of the Woodwell Climate Research Center. “Agriculture would be derailed, ecosystems would crash, and ‘normal’ weather would be a thing of the past.”

Greenland is also changing color as it melts from the white of ice, which reflects sunlight, heat and energy away from the planet, to the blue and green of the ocean and land, which absorb much more energy, Holland said.

Greenland plays a role in the dramatic freeze that two-thirds of the United States is currently experiencing. And back in 2012, weather patterns over Greenland helped steer Superstorm Sandy into New York and New Jersey, according to winter weather expert Judah Cohen of the private firm Atmospheric and Environmental Research.

Because of Greenland's mountains of ice, it also changes patterns in the jet stream, which brings storms across the globe and dictates daily weather. Often, especially in winter, a blocking system of high pressure off Greenland causes Arctic air to plunge to the west and east, smacking North America and Europe, Cohen said.

Because it straddles the Arctic circle between the United States, Russia and Europe, Greenland is a geopolitical prize that the U.S. and others have eyed for more than 150 years. It's even more valuable as the Arctic opens up more to shipping and trade.

None of that takes into consideration the unique look of the ice-covered island that has some of the Earth's oldest rocks.

“I see it as insanely beautiful. It's eye-watering to be there,” said Holland, who has conducted research on the ice more than 30 times since 2007. "Pieces of ice the size of the Empire State Building are just crumbling off cliffs and crashing into the ocean. And also, the beautiful wildlife, all the seals and the killer whales. It’s just breathtaking.”

Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment

Follow Seth Borenstein on X at @borenbears

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The plane carrying Donald Trump Jr., departs from the airport in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

The plane carrying Donald Trump Jr., departs from the airport in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Donald Trump Jr., center, smiles after arriving in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Donald Trump Jr., center, smiles after arriving in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

FILE - An iceberg floats in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 12, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - An iceberg floats in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 12, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Large icebergs float away as the sun rises near Kulusuk, Greenland, on Aug. 16, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - Large icebergs float away as the sun rises near Kulusuk, Greenland, on Aug. 16, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - Two groups from the Poseidon Expeditions tour company look at a glacier in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 7, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Two groups from the Poseidon Expeditions tour company look at a glacier in the Scoresby Sund, on Sept. 7, 2023, in Greenland. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Small pieces of ice float in the water in Nuuk Fjord, Greenland, on June 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Keith Virgo, File)

FILE - Small pieces of ice float in the water in Nuuk Fjord, Greenland, on June 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Keith Virgo, File)

FILE - A boat navigates large icebergs near the town of Kulusuk, in eastern Greenland, on Aug. 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - A boat navigates large icebergs near the town of Kulusuk, in eastern Greenland, on Aug. 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

GENEVA (AP) — José Mourinho’s quest to be a champion again.

Europe’s top goal-scorer on a title hunt before a big move.

A young coach reviving a European giant.

Look outside the top five leagues in Europe and the season run-in promises the kind of title race drama the English Premier League lacks as Liverpool dominates.

Galatasaray is still just ahead of Mourinho’s Fenerbahce in Turkey.

Sporting Lisbon is being fired by Viktor Gyökeres goals to hold off Benfica in Portugal.

Ajax is back on top in the Netherlands in 35-year-old coach Francesco Farioli’s first season.

Young Boys is close to going last-to-first to retain the Swiss title, and unbeaten Red Star Belgrade is making a procession of the Serbian league.

Here’s a look at how the business end of the soccer season is playing out across Europe:

Mourinho was hired by Fenerbahce last June to end the Istanbul club’s wait for a first league title since 2014, and a first Champions League place for 17 seasons.

It’s now a decade since he last lifted a league trophy — the 2015 Premier League with Chelsea, his third in England after two in Portugal with Porto, two in Italy with Inter Milan and one in Spain with Real Madrid.

Turkey would be the fifth country Mourinho conquers and he has been typically outspoken, making provocative news in his new home as city rival Galatasaray has led the league almost all season. Mourinho reacted badly on Wednesday to being ousted from the Turkish Cup in another Istanbul derby, grabbing the nose of Gala coach Okan Buruk after the game.

In the league, Fenerbahce sits six points behind defending champion Gala, which has played a game more. The gap closed last weekend when Gala’s unbeaten record ended after a 2-1 derby loss at Besiktas. Fenerbahce has lost just twice, also at Besiktas and at home to Gala in September.

Simply extending a four-month unbeaten run through the last nine rounds might not be enough for Mourinho, who has strikers Youssef En-Nesyri and Edin Džeko combining for more than a goal per game.

The season ends on June 1, one day after the Champions League final in Munich. Only the title winner goes direct into the next Champions League where Fenerbahce last played in 2009.

In a season of three coaches — one left, one fired, one hired in December — Viktor Gyökeres has been the bedrock of Sporting’s title defense.

The Sweden striker’s tally of 30 league goals is the most in Europe, three more than Mohamed Salah at Liverpool. Gyökeres also got six in the Champions League, including three against Manchester City.

That 4-1 rout of Man City in November was a farewell home game for coach Ruben Amorim, who formally joined Manchester United days later.

Through the turmoil, Sporting has stayed on top and unbeaten since a 1-0 win over Benfica on Dec. 29, which was a first game under current coach Rui Borges. That result is keeping Sporting ahead on head-to-head record as it is tied on points after Benfica beat Farense 3-2 on Wednesday.

With seven rounds left, Benfica hosting Sporting on May 10 could be decisive. An extra incentive is only the title winner goes directly into the next Champions League because the Netherlands passed Portugal as the nation ranked sixth by UEFA.

Ajax’s 2023-24 season was chaotic. Turnover in the dugout and front office, failure to contend for any trophy, beatings from its biggest rivals, and a fifth-place finish in the league 35 points behind champion PSV Eindhoven.

Enter Italian coach Farioli, a protégé of Roberto De Zerbi, who joined after one season at Nice. As the Ajax fans sing: “Don’t worry, about a thing.”

A 2-0 win at second-placed PSV last weekend lifted Farioli’s team nine points clear with seven rounds left.

At age 19, Jorrel Hato looks the next big talent from the storied Ajax academy in a defense that has given up just 20 league goals after conceding 61 last season.

While Paris Saint-Germain is heading for an unbeaten Ligue 1 title, Red Star Belgrade could be the most dominant team.

The 1991 European Cup winner has won 27 games and drawn two, scoring more than 100 with a goal difference of +82. Red Star completes the 30-game regular season on Sunday at third-placed OFK Belgrade, before an eight-team championship round.

Swiss champion Young Boys was last in the 12-team league in mid-October, and now is in the heart of a six-team title race after winning on Tuesday at leader Servette. It is not a vintage season and no team is close to averaging two points per game.

In Belgium, Genk topped the regular season standings by nine points and leads the championship playoff group by four from Club Brugge. They meet twice more, starting on April 13.

There are three-way title races in Poland and Croatia.

In Poland’s Ekstraklasa, the first-time champions in the past two seasons, Rakow Czestochowa and Jagiellonia, lead the way from Lech Poznan.

In Croatia, Hajduk Split, coached by Gennaro Gattuso and with Ivan Rakitić anchoring midfield, leads Rijeka by one point. Dinamo Zagreb is third despite the financial advantage of playing in the Champions League.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

FILE - Sporting's Viktor Gyokeres celebrates after scoring during the UEFA Champions League opening phase soccer match between Sporting and Manchester City in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, November 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Armando Franca, file)

FILE - Sporting's Viktor Gyokeres celebrates after scoring during the UEFA Champions League opening phase soccer match between Sporting and Manchester City in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, November 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Armando Franca, file)

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