Is the Arctic getting bigger or smaller?

Is the Arctic getting bigger or smaller?

The Arctic regularly reaches ever smaller extents of end-of-summer minimum extents of sea ice. This changing sea ice extent is cited by the IPCC as an indicator of a warming world. However, sea ice extent is growing in Antarctica [1]. In fact, it’s recently broken a record for maximum extent.

Why is the Arctic shrinking?

In the Arctic Ocean, the area covered by sea ice grows and shrinks over the course of the year. Each fall, as less sunlight reaches the Arctic and air temperatures begin to drop, additional sea ice forms. The total area covered by ice increases through the winter, usually reaching its maximum extent in early March.

Is the Arctic losing ice?

A new study has documented drastic ice loss in both the north and south polar regions; scientists found that the single biggest reduction came from Arctic sea ice — the Earth lost 7.6 trillion metric tons of it in the last three decades.

How fast is the Arctic shrinking?

13.1% per decade
“Even with global warming and the overall downward trend in sea ice, there is still natural variability,” says Walt Meier, a senior research scientist at NSIDC, who is based at the University of Colorado Boulder. The minimum Arctic sea-ice extent is declining at a rate of 13.1% per decade.

Is Antarctica getting colder?

There is no evidence that any significant region of Antarctic has been cooling over the long term, except in fall. In a 2016 paper, Turner and others point out that if one considers just the last ~18 years, the trend on the Antarctic Peninsula has been cooling.

What happens if North Pole melts?

“If all the ice covering Antarctica , Greenland, and in mountain glaciers around the world were to melt, sea level would rise about 70 meters (230 feet). The ocean would cover all the coastal cities. And land area would shrink significantly,” the Museum of Natural History site reads.

Is the Antarctica getting colder?

How is the latitude of the Arctic Circle affected?

Its latitude depends on the Earth’s axial tilt, which fluctuates within a margin of more than 2° over a 41,000-year period, owing to tidal forces resulting from the orbit of the Moon. Consequently, the Arctic Circle is currently drifting northwards (shrinking) at a speed of about 15 m (49 ft) per year.

How much is the Arctic sea ice declining?

September Arctic sea ice is now declining at a rate of 12.8 percent per decade, relative to the 1981 to 2010 average. This graph shows the average monthly Arctic sea ice extent each September since 1979, derived from satellite observations.

How is the climate in the Arctic changing?

The average temperature of the Arctic has increased 2.3°C since the 1970s. Ice dependent species such as narwhals, polar bears, and walruses are at increasing risk with shrinking sea ice cover.

What’s the difference between the Arctic and the Antarctic?

The Antarctic is almost the geographic opposite of the Arctic – not just because it’s on the other side of the world. The Antarctic consists of land surrounded by an ocean. The sea ice is free to move, and often floats northward into warmer waters where it eventually melts during the southern hemisphere’s summer months.