I have always believed it is a hoax. If the polar ice caps were melting and the globe was getting warmer than the bodies of water would obviously be getting larger. They're not. What is actually happening is the climates are shifting. As the Earth spins it doesn't spend perfectly on its axis. It has a slight wobble to it. In the 1980s it was somehow thrown off balance. Back then the Magnetic North Pole was moving five or six miles towards Russia per year. Over the past few years it has been moving between 30 and 60 miles towards Russia every year. Obviously when the poles change the climates will shift as well. Nowadays if you fly an airplane through that area with a compass it will point to Russia rather than the North Pole. Military instruments and flight instruments have all had to be recalibrated. They are computerized. They have been recalibrated to point towards the geographical north pole rather than the Magnetic North Pole which has shifted. If you would carry an old school compass on the airplane with you it will still Point towards the Magnetic North Pole which is getting closer to Russia everyday. Some scientist believe that the poles are switching places. Either way. Once the Magnetic North Pole has made it all the way to the equator, that will make the equator run through both of the geographical poles. This will obviously make two very cold spots on the equator and it will make the geographical poles very warm. as the ice melts where it used to be, new ice will form in the new cold areas. The climates as we know them are in for quite a huge change.