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Shown below are up-to-date satellite observations of the sea ice covers of both the Arctic and the Antarctic, along with comparisons with the historical satellite record of more than 4 decades.
In the Antarctic, with the onset of spring, the pace of seasonal sea ice loss has increased. Plot and compare different years and ranges. Obtain daily sea ice extent values, ranges, and median values for the Arctic or the Antarctic. Analyze monthly-averaged or daily sea ice extent and concentration via interactive maps.
The daily Sea Ice Index provides a quick look at Antarctic-wide changes in sea ice. It provides consistently processed daily ice extent and concentration images and data since 1979.
In the waters around Antarctica, ice coverage shrank to near-historic lows for the third year in a row. The recurring loss hints at a long-term shift in conditions in the Southern Ocean, likely resulting from global climate change, according to scientists at NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
In the waters around Antarctica, ice coverage in 2024 shrank to near-historic lows for the third year in a row. The recurring loss hints at a long-term shift in conditions in the Southern Ocean, scientists say.
Antarctic sea ice is the sea ice of the Southern Ocean. It extends from the far north in the winter and retreats to almost the coastline every summer. [ 1 ] Sea ice is frozen seawater that is usually less than a few meters thick.
Antarctic sea ice extent each February from 1979 through 2023. Based on satellite data, extent is the total area where the ice concentration is 15 percent or higher. In the past decade, the February summer minimum has been extremely variable, hitting both near-record highs and record lows.
On September 10, 2023, sea ice in the Antarctic reached an annual maximum extent of 16.96 million square kilometers (6.55 million square miles), setting a record low maximum in the satellite record that began in 1979.
Around Antarctica, scientists are tracking near record-low sea ice at a time when it should have been growing extensively during the Southern Hemisphere’s darkest and coldest months. Ice around the continent is on track to be just over 6.6 million square miles (16.96 million square kilometers).
Antarctica's huge ice expanse regulates the planet's temperature, as the white surface reflects the Sun's energy back into the atmosphere and also cools the water beneath and near it. Without...