"Antarctic Summer Sea Ice Extent Hits Record Low for Third Consecutive Year"

Reference photo. [Image source=Yonhap News]

As global warming accelerates, the extent of Antarctic sea ice has reportedly reached record lows for the third consecutive year.

According to Yonhap News and foreign media on the 25th, the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) announced that the five-day average sea ice extent in Antarctica as of the 15th was measured at 1.99 million km². The five-day average sea ice extent as of the 21st was 1.98 million km².

This figure is close to last year's record low of 1.78 million km², which remains the lowest on record to date. Last year's record also broke the previous record set in 2022.

Generally, sea ice in the Southern Hemisphere peaks in September as winter ends and reaches its lowest levels in February to March as summer ends. Therefore, it will take another one to two weeks or more to determine whether the current level is the lowest of this year.

Scientists pointed out that since satellite observations began in 1979, the summer sea ice extent had never fallen below 2 million km² before 2022, and the record low sea ice extent over the past three years is evidence that Antarctica is undergoing a rapid "critical transition."

The problem is that the reduction of sea ice leads to a vicious cycle that accelerates the melting of more sea ice. Sea ice reflects solar energy back into the atmosphere and cools nearby water temperatures, playing a role in regulating the Earth's temperature. When sea ice disappears, the ocean absorbs more light and the warmer water melts more ice.

The thinning of Antarctic sea ice is also a concern. Sea ice that melts in summer and refreezes in winter is likely to be thinner than before, and thinner sea ice melts faster.

Walt Meier, the chief researcher at NSIDC, explained that most of the Antarctic sea ice completely melts every summer, so the ice thickness is only about 1 to 2 meters.

He estimated that the ice in many areas has generally become thinner, noting that the sea ice extent in September last year, the previous winter, was the lowest ever recorded for that period.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.