Billions of tonnes of ice in Greenland is melting 50 years ahead of climate change schedules, preventing inhabitants from moving around the country by sledge and leading to the surreal spectacle of children playing in the Arctic sea due to rising temperatures.

A heatwave gripping the Arctic region is causing high levels of melting ice, and has also seen global sea levels rise, in a clear sign that climate change is taking its severe toll much more quickly than predicted.

Earlier this month, in the town of Qaanaaq in northwestern Greenland, children were seen splashing around in the sea and wearing t-shirts, which would have been unheard of ten years ago.

Some schoolgirls have reportedly even started wearing skirts as part of their uniform. Climate experts said the sudden increase in melting ice was caused by greenhouse gas emissions over the past century and the so-called Albedo effect, where falling ice levels means that heat is absorbed by the planet instead of being reflected back into space, piling on yet more heat.

They also warned that daily lives of Greenlanders risked being upended by climate change, with iced areas usually traversed by sledge or snow ski turning into small lakes.