Arctic Ice Shrinks to Summer Low

Arctic sea ice shrank to just 1.60 million square miles this week, hitting its summer low point and reaching a statistical tie with 2007 for the second lowest extent on record.

Arctic sea ice melted to 2nd smallest level in nearly 40 years, reaching low point Sept 10: https://t.co/ko8MlRh92c pic.twitter.com/YeQIp2jay5

— NASA (@NASA) September 15, 2016

This year’s minimum is approximately one million square miles less than the 1979 to 2000 average.

“What this year shows us is that we’re primed for much greater ice losses in the near future,” Ted Scambos, lead scientist with National Snow and Ice Data Center, said.

National Snow and Ice Data Center Director Mark Serreze said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Arctic were “essentially ice free” by 2030.

For a deeper dive:

News: Washington Post, AP, Climate Central, USA Today, TIME, Alaska Dispatch News, BBC, Carbon Brief, Climate Home

For more climate change and clean energy news, you can follow Climate Nexus on Twitter and Facebook, and sign up for daily Hot News.