Global sea ice extent at a low point

By mid-February, the amount of sea ice around the world had dropped by more than 2.5 million square kilometers compared to what used to be normal before 2010 — that's what NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center are saying.

In recent years, less new ice has been forming during the winters in the Arctic seas, and the amount of older, long-term ice has also been shrinking. That downward trend we've been seeing for decades? Yeah, it continued this winter too — according to NASA and the NSIDC.

On March 22, the Arctic's winter sea ice hit its yearly peak — and still managed to break a negative record. It only reached 14.33 million square kilometers, the smallest it's been since records began 47 years ago. According to the NSIDC, that's about 80,000 square kilometers less than the previous record low set in 2017.
Meanwhile, down in Antarctica, the summer sea ice had also shrunk dramatically — by March 1, it was down to just 1.98 million square kilometers, the second lowest level ever recorded.

"There's going to be less ice to start off the summer season," said NASA ice researcher Ninette Boisvert, adding that "it doesn't bode well for the future." Walt Meier, a lead scientist at NSIDC, pointed to warming as the main reason behind the shrinking ice.

Jennifer Francis from the Woodwell Climate Research Center in Cape Cod called the loss of sea ice especially worrying, saying, "It's really an early warning system that's sounding the alarm about a bunch of other subtle changes we might not notice right away."

Scientists also say that the warming in the Arctic isn't just a local issue — it's already starting to mess with the weather in other parts of the world too.