Financial Times - Leslie Hook
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Arctic sea ice hit the second-lowest level ever recorded this year, reaching its summer minimum level in mid-September.
Warm temperatures and an unusual summer heatwave in Siberia contributed to the ice reaching that threshold for only the second time in the 42 year records, just behind that of 2012, according to the US National Snow and Ice Data Center.
Average air temperatures over the Arctic Ocean were at record highs during May, July and August.
As the planet warms, the Arctic Sea is expected to undergo its first ice-free summer before the year 2050, according to a research paper in Geophysical Research Letters.
The average rate of sea ice decline is about 13 per cent per year.
During autumn the sea ice expands, and thickens, although by the end of October the extent of the sea ice was still about one-third below normal levels, based on the 1981-200 average.
As the ice melts, through the loss of its reflective surface the ocean absorbs more solar radiation which in turn exacerbates global warming. It can also have an effect on the water circulation, with far-reaching consequences for weather patterns and ecosystems.
Links
- Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis
- The Arctic Hasn’t Been This Warm For 3 Million Years – And That Foreshadows Big Changes For The Rest Of The Planet
- Melting Antarctic Ice Will Raise Sea Level By 2.5 Metres – Even If Paris Climate Goals Are Met, Study Finds
- The Tipping Points At The Heart Of The Climate Crisis
- Land In Russia’s Arctic Blows ‘Like a Bottle Of Champagne’
- 28 Trillion Ton Ice Melt Spells Danger For Sea Level Rise, Climate Change
- The Catastrophic Science Behind The Stunning Photos Of The Arctic Crater
- Canadian Ice Shelf Area Bigger Than Manhattan Collapses Due To Rising Temperatures
- Global Warming Is Driving Polar Bears Toward Extinction, Researchers Say
- Seven Things To Know About Climate Change
- What Antarctica’s ‘doomsday glacier’ means for the planet
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