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AGUANA, Guam — Commander, Task Force (CTF) 75 took permanent ownership of two MK VI patrol boats at Naval Base Guam, Aug. 24.

The MK VI patrol boats are now permanently assigned in two separate strategic areas of operations. In March, two MK VI patrol boats were delivered to CTF-56, based in Bahrain.

The newest generation of patrol boat, the MK VI is a 85-foot combatant craft and provides a persistent capability to patrol shallow littoral areas for the purpose of force protection of U.S. and coalition forces, as well as safeguarding critical infrastructure.

“Innovative assets like the MK VI allow us to maintain maritime superiority and help strengthen and enable our partners within the Indo-Asia-Pacific region,” said Capt. Erich Diehl, commodore, CTF-75. “We are excited to receive and employ the MK VI throughout our area of operations.”

The MK VI patrol boat offers the Coastal Riverine Forces a variety of mission sets, from waterborne to mine countermeasures to theater security cooperation, enabling operators to provide their critical security “know-how” and force protection worldwide. The U.S. Navy will utilize the MK VI patrol boats and their crews in a variety of Pacific Fleet exercises and operations.

Navy Expeditionary Combat Command’s Cmdr. Raul Gandara emphasized the enhanced capabilities of the Navy’s newest and next generation patrol boats.

“The unique design of the patrol boats is its configurability, which will provide the opportunity for installation of future systems directly supporting the operational commander,” said Gandara.

The MK VI patrol boats are globally transportable and can operate from amphibious ship well decks to forward locations, while partnering with allied navies at a new and more effective level. Additionally, the MK VI patrol boats will provide enhanced capabilities such as superior speed, range and maneuverability.

The patrol boats can reach speeds in excess of 35 knots and have a range of more than 600 nautical miles.

The Coastal Riverine Force (CORIVFOR) operates in harbors, rivers, bays, across the littorals, and ashore. The primary mission of CORIVFOR is to conduct maritime security operations across all phases of military operations by defending high-value assets, critical maritime infrastructure, ports and harbors, both inland and on coastal waterways, against enemies, and, when commanded, to conduct offensive combat operations.

CORIVFOR is a component of Navy Expeditionary Combat Command and provides flexible responsive maritime security forces capable of performing high-level security.
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The question is will they be used against China or Iran.

The research team used data from aerial surveys and satellite-based observations acquired by multiple international space agencies. The highly sensitive radar sounder, gravimeter and laser profiling systems, coupled with radar and optical images from space, monitor and record changes in the shape, size and position of glacial ice over long time periods, providing precise data on the state of Earth’s polar regions.

The scientists determined that the bottom of Zachariae Isstrom is being rapidly eroded by warmer ocean water mixed with growing amounts of meltwater from the ice sheet surface and they say that the glacier is being hit from above and below. The top of the glacier is melting away as a result of decades of steadily increasing air temperatures, while its underside is compromised by currents carrying warmer ocean water, and the glacier is now breaking away into bits and pieces and retreating.

Zachariae Isstrom is close to another large glacier that’s also melting rapidly but is receding at a slower rate because it’s protected by an inland hill. The two glaciers make up 12 percent of the Greenland ice sheet and would boost global sea levels by more than 40 inches if they fully collapsed.

So, they melt and the sea level goes up a bit (although three feet is more than just a bit!). We can deal with that, right? Unfortunately, that’s not the only consequence.

Ocean circulation at risk

Scientists from the University of South Florida, along with colleagues in Canada and the Netherlands, have determined that the influx of fresh water from the Greenland ice sheet is “freshening” the North Atlantic Ocean and could disrupt the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), an important component of ocean circulation that could have a global effect. Researchers say it could impact the future climate in both Europe and North America.

Freshwater flux from Greenland is composed of melt runoff from ice and tundra runoff as well as the calving of icebergs. The amount of freshwater flux from Greenland began to dramatically increase in the mid-1990s. How much of the enhanced freshwater flux actually winds up in the Labrador Sea?

Because of the clockwise nature of ocean circulation around Greenland, most of the freshwater increase, up to 70 percent, is being driven toward the Labrador Sea, magnifying its impact and increasing the possibility of significant effects on the AMOC.

The AMOC transports a large amount of heat into the North Atlantic where it is given up to the atmosphere and helps regulate the climate in Europe and North America. The major effect of a slowing AMOC is expected to be cooler winters and summers around the North Atlantic, and small regional increases in sea level on the North American coast.

The AMOC is a part of the Gulf Stream and they are both part of a complex global ocean circulation system that’s still not completely understood. The researchers say this shows the need to look at different components of the climate system, including the ice sheets and oceans, in an integrated sense.

Unfortunately, understanding what’s happening may not do a lot to stop it. Our children and grandchildren may lead very different lives.