Arctic ice has retreated to its second lowest level on record since the beginnings of satellite recordings, U.S. researchers have said.
Img: Arctic Ice melt. Credit: NSIDC
In an ongoing update, scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC) have reported that ice coverage has dipped below that which was recorded in 2005 - the record lowest year before that reported in 2007.
The researchers are concerned that with a number of weeks still left in the Arctic summer, the situation could have reached a "tipping point".
"We could very well be in that quick slide downwards in terms of passing a tipping point," said Mark Serreze, a senior scientist at the Colorado-based NSIDC. "It's tipping now. We're seeing it happen now," he told the Associated Press news agency.
In a statement on the Centre's website, researchers say: "Arctic sea ice extent on August 26 was 5.26 million square kilometres (2.03 million square miles), a decline of 2.06 million square kilometres (795,000 square miles) since the beginning of the month."
"Extent is now within 430,000 square kilometres (166,000 square miles) of last year's value on the same date and is 1.97 million square kilometres (760,000 square miles) below the 1979 to 2000 average," says the statement.
NSIDC researchers say the most recent ice retreat primarily reflects melt in the Chukchi Sea off the Alaskan coast and the East Siberian Seas off the coast of eastern Russia.
A complete ice-free Arctic was originally predicted for around 2080 however that was revised down to 2050-2030. However the more recent satellite evidence has the Arctic free of ice during the summer by as soon as a few years.
An ice-free Arctic will exacerbate global warming say scientists because the white ice reflects more solar energy than the darker ocean.
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)
Advertising
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)