Positive Feedback Loop

Increased melting of sea ice leads to more radiation absorbed by the ocean, which increases ocean temperature, which in turn causes more ice to melt and the cycle to continue. In other words, a cause (warming) results in an effect (ice melting), which itself becomes a cause leading to another effect (decreased albedo, so more radiation is absorbed and the ocean gets warmer), resulting in a perpetual cycle of cause and effect. The ice–albedo effect is an example of a feedback loop. In a feedback loop, a system’s output is “fed back” into the system as an input, creating a chain of events that can cycle around in a “loop.” The cycle of melting sea ice leading to more ice loss is an example of a positive, or reinforcing, feedback loop. In a positive (reinforcing) feedback loop, the initial change to the system becomes stronger, or amplified.