The National Snow & Ice Data Center, based at the University of Colorado in Boulder, issued a news release stating that preliminary data indicates that on 13 September, Arctic sea ice reached its likely minimum extent for 2013.
NSIDC said the minimum sea ice extent was the sixth lowest in the satellite record for the Arctic, and reinforces the long-term downward trend in Arctic ice extent. Sea ice extent will now begin its seasonal increase through autumn and winter.
On September 13, 2013, sea ice extent dropped to 5.10 million sq km (1.97 million sq mi.) This appears to have been the lowest extent of the year. In response to the setting sun and falling temperatures, ice extent will now climb through autumn and winter. However, a shift in wind patterns or a period of late season melt could still push the ice extent lower. The minimum extent was reached two days earlier than the 1981 to 2010 average minimum date of September 15.
This year’s minimum was 1.69 million sq. km (653,000 sq mi.) above the record minimum extent in the satellite era, which occurred on September 16, 2012, and 1.12 million sq km (432,000 sq mi.) below the 1981 to 2010 average minimum.
Comparing this year’s minimum extent to 2012, while extent was higher on average this year, there were variations from region to region. There was considerably higher sea ice extent in the Beaufort, Chukchi, and East Siberian sea regions, with the ice edge several hundred kilometers farther south compared to last year. This year, the Canadian Archipelago also retained much more ice, keeping the Northwest Passage closed. The most notable area of less ice, this year compared to last year, was off the east coast of Greenland, south of Fram Strait. Other small areas of decreased extent were found north of the Kara and Laptev seas.
See an animation of this summer’s sea ice extent produced by the NASA Scientific Visualization Studio at http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/goto?4104.
The image compares differences in ice-covered areas between September 13, 2013, the date of this year’s minimum, and September 16, 2012, the record low minimum extent. Light gray shading indicates the region where ice occurred in both 2013 and 2012, while white and dark gray areas show ice cover unique to 2013 and to 2012, respectively. [Image credit: National Snow and Ice Data Center]
Meanwhile, in the Antarctic, sea ice reached a record high on 18 September, tied with last year's maximum.
This is a preliminary announcement from NSIDC. Changing winds could still push ice floes together, reducing ice extent further. NSIDC scientists will release a full analysis of the melt season in early October, once monthly data are available for September.
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