March Arctic Ice Extent Second-Lowest on Record

The latest report from the US National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) indicates that the month of March saw the Arctic at its second-lowest ice extent in recorded history. On the bright side of things, the amount of thicker, multi-year ice increased slightly throughout 2010.

According to studies, the maximum ice extent at the North Pole was reached on March 7. After that time, ice sheets began to melt again, which they will continue to do until next winter.

Throughout the Arctic Ocean, surface temperatures were significantly warmer than the average for this period at this location. In spite of all this, the amount of thick ice in the Arctic increased last year.

For March 2011, the monthly NSIDC report indicates that the Arctic ices covered a maximum area of 14.56 million square kilometers (5.62 million square miles). The data indicate that this is the second-lowest extent on record. The record holder is the winter of 2006.

The Labrador Sea and the Gulf of St. Lawrence, alongside other areas in all sectors of the Arctic Ocean, were covered by abnormally-small ice sheets. Only portions of these waters were frozen over, where normally they are covered entirely by thick ice.

“Late in the month, extent again increased, though not above the previously reported level of March 7. This late increase is due mainly to increases of extent in the Kara, Barents, and Greenland Seas,” the new NSIDC report shows.

“The Greenland Sea increase is likely due primarily to ice that was exported from the Arctic Ocean to the Greenland Sea by winds and ocean currents, though some ice growth is also apparent,” experts add.

Ice sheets in the Kara and Barents Seas formed due to extremely cold conditions in their respective areas. Temperatures here were much lower than normal for this time of the year.

The new report also holds data on water and surface temperatures throughout the Arctic. The readings recorded for March are higher than the average, and well within predictions made via climate models.

“Air temperatures over almost all of the Arctic Ocean were above average, reaching 7 to 9 degrees Celsius (13 to 16 degrees Fahrenheit) above average over the Chukchi Sea. Below-average temperatures were found over Greenland, the Norwegian Sea and part of Canada,” the document says.

Interestingly, experts also determined that several tongues of old ice lingered throughout the previous melt season at locations where they did not endure in other years. Scientists have yet to determine why this happened.