Arctic SEA Ice Cover is at Record Lows according to NASA

http://www.livescience.com/54191-arctic-sea-ice-cover-2016.html

The ice covering the Arctic is at near record lows this year, and this icy deficit may impact weather around the world, NASA reports.

Every March, the Arctic's sea ice reaches its maximum cover, both in area and thickness, before it recedes to its yearly minimum in September. Live Science spoke with NASA scientist Walt Meier yesterday (March 25) to learn more about the low sea-ice level and what it means for the rest of the planet.

"This year we're seeing a real extremely warm winter," Meier said. "Temperatures have been 10 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit [5.5 to 8.3 degrees Celsius] above normal [in the Arctic]. And we see that reflected in the very low sea-ice cover that generally grows to its maxima around this time of year." [On Ice: Stunning Images of Canadian Arctic]

NASA has been collecting data on Arctic sea-ice extent (a term that refers to area and volume) since the late 1970s. Last year's maximum was the fourth lowest on record, and 2016 is also among the lowest that scientists have seen in about 40 years.

The Arctic's sea-ice extent varies from year to year, but overall researchers have seen a worrisome downward trend over time.

"We've lost about two Texases' worth of sea ice during the wintertime," Meier told Live Science. "In the summer, it's even more extreme. We've lost almost double that or more in terms of the area covered."

Furthermore, the ice is thinner now than it has been in past years. "So, we've lost about 50 percent of the volume of the sea ice, or the mass of the sea ice," since record keeping began, he said.

These dramatic changes don't stay in the Arctic. Typically, white-colored ice reflects about 80 percent of the sun's rays back into space. With less ice cover, the ocean absorbs a lot more of these rays, which warms the water.