Arctic sea ice may reach its maximum extent much earlier than usual

In southwestern Greenland, where temperatures have been unusually warm this winter, a drop of water falls from an iceberg melting. Image: David Goldman/AP.

Winter temperatures in several places were 30 ° hotter than average, a scenario that was echoed in Antarctica.

A scientist has warned that an intense heat event in the Arctic might force it to reach the maximum extent of its ice for the year "considerably earlier" than usual.

Last week, temperatures in Norway exceeded records with rain falling at Svalbard airport and exceptionally mild temperatures in Greenland and the Russian archipelago of Franz Josef Land.

According to reports, some stations in the Arctic winter were 30 degrees warmer than typical. Concordia station, on the Antarctic Plateau, set a new record low of -11.8C on Friday, more than 40 degrees warmer than usual for this time of year.

"It is rare to have such huge deviations from average happen at the same time at both poles," said Prof Julienne Stroeve, professor of polar observation and modeling at University College London. "In the Arctic, it may have led to the maximum sea ice extent reaching significantly earlier than average" (UCL).

According to statistics published by the US National Snow and Ice Data Center, the Arctic sea ice extent was running considerably below the 1981 to 2010 median. It covered 14.5 million square kilometers (5.6 million square miles) on March 21, compared to a historical average of 15.5 million square kilometers.

The NSIDC's graph revealed that levels were also trending lower than in 2012 when Arctic sea ice reached its lowest point ever. However, ice extent was higher than in 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018, and was roughly in line with levels in 2019 and 2021 at this time of year. 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2011 all saw similar levels of pollution.

Stroeve was hesitant to relate the excessive heat events to the global warming issue. "While such warming extremes may become more common as a result of climate change, it is too early to conclude that this particular event is linked to climate change," she said. "Weather is always surprisingly unpredictable." It's also worth remembering that, while warmer than average, air temperatures are still below zero."

"The IPCC report on effects, adaptation, and vulnerability, issued in February, highlights that the window of opportunity to act on climate is fast narrowing," said Dr. Lisa Schipper, co-ordinating lead chapter author for the IPCC sixth assessment report and Oxford environmental research fellow.

"I don't know what will wake people up to this urgency if these extreme temperatures don't do it, especially when conflict threatens to stimulate more fossil fuel extraction and use," said Dr. Lisa Schipper.

Source: The Guardian.