Arctic sea ice near average in April, now melting fast
May 5th, 2010The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) reports while Arctic sea ice extent throughout April was near the 1979 – 2000 average (and the highest in the past decade), much of the ice is full of open areas (called pulynyas); much of the thicker, multi-year ice has been pushed south along the coast of Greenland toward the warm waters of the North Atlantic where it will melt during the summer; and Arctic air temperatures have remained persistently warmer than average throughout the winter and early spring season.
During April, Arctic sea ice extent declined at a steady pace, remaining just below the 1979 to 2000 average. Ice extent for April 2010 was the largest for that month in the past decade. At the same time, changing wind patterns have caused older, thicker ice to move south along Greenland’s east coast, where it will likely melt during the summer. Temperatures in the Arctic remained above average.
The very late maximum ice extent, on March 31, means that the melt season started almost a month later than normal. This graph shows that ice extent has now begun to plunge.
The Polar Science Center at the University of Washington reports total Arctic ice volume for March 2010 was the lowest over the 1979-2009 period and 38% below the 1979 maximum.
