The area of sea ice around Antarctica has sunk to a record low level, and according to scientists, such an extreme situation has never been seen before. Ice extent is expected to shrink even further before this summer's melt season ends.
A significant decline in Antarctic sea ice over the past six years indicates that the current record heat in the ocean and changes in weather patterns may mean that the climate crisis is showing up in the observations.
As early as 2014, climate models suggested that the continent's giant West Antarctic Ice Sheet was doomed to collapse due to global warming.
'Extreme situation': Antarctic sea ice hits record low https://t.co/ragghrJESt
— The Guardian (@guardian) February 15, 2023
The ever-increasing loss of sea ice exposes ice sheets and their glaciers to waves that accelerate their disintegration and melting.
"I've never seen such an extreme, ice-free situation here," said Karsten Gohl of the Helmholtz Center for Arctic and Ocean Research at the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany. "The rapid decline in sea ice over the past six years is quite remarkable, given that the ice cover has barely changed in the previous 35 years," he added.
Scientists at the US Ice Data Center also said they had measured a new record low. According to them
Antarctic sea ice extent fell to 1.91 million square kilometers on February 13, below the previous record set on February 25, 2022.
Sea ice melts during the Antarctic summer and begins to grow again in autumn.
According to German scientists, the intense melting can be attributed to unusually high air temperatures to the west and east of the Antarctic Peninsula, which exceeded the long-term average by about 1.5 degrees Celsius. In addition, there were strong westerly winds, which enhance the retreat of the sea ice.
(Source: marmalade.co.hu; hirado.hu | Image: pixabay.com)