Washington - Ice in the summertime could be a thing of the past in the Arctic in as soon as 30 years time due to global warming, a new US study found as world governments prepare to open a summit Monday on the state of the poles.

The joint study by the US government's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Washington is much more dire than previous forecasts, which warned that the Arctic ice might vanish only at the turn of the century.

"The Arctic is changing faster than anticipated," said James Overland, a co-author of the study published Friday in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Overland said the melting was due to a combination of natural cycles and human-caused global warming.

The study was compiled through computer projections and observations of ice loss over the last two summers in the Arctic.

US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will host government officials and scientists from 47 countries starting Monday in Washington to discuss the state of the north and south poles.

The nearly two-week gathering marks the first ever meeting of two separate diplomatic bodies that manage the Arctic and Antarctic and will consider the effects of climate change and tourism on the icy regions.

Scientists have long warned that melting ice in the poles, the result of heat-trapping gases being released into the atmosphere by global industry, could have serious consequences for the rest of the Earth by raising sea levels and temperatures. (dpa)