Images of melting ice have become one of the 'classic' climate images, and are therefore recognised as such. Arctic sea ice is not a local or familiar terrain for most people, so it is unlikely to connect with their everyday lives. However, showing people authentically at work (collecting scientific data) is the most effective way to bridge the gap between a distant impact and the viewer.
WHAT IT SHOWS: Sampling Melt Ponds. On July 10, 2011, Jens Ehn of Scripps Institution of Oceanography (left), and Christie Wood of Clark University (right), scooped water from melt ponds on sea ice in the Chukchi Sea. The water was later analyzed from the Healy's onboard science lab. The ICESCAPE mission, or "Impacts of Climate on Ecosystems and Chemistry of the Arctic Pacific Environment," is a NASA shipborne investigation to study how changing conditions in the Arctic affect the ocean's chemistry and ecosystems.