Arctic Sea Ice Reaches Seventh Lowest Extent on Record

Arctic sea ice has likely reached its minimum extent for the year, at 4.28 million square kilometers (1.65 million square miles) on September 11, 2024, according to scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at the University of Colorado Boulder.

The 2024 minimum is ranked seventh lowest in the 46-year satellite record. The last 18 years are the lowest 18 Arctic sea ice extents in the satellite record.

The overall, downward trend in the minimum extent from 1979 to 2024 is 12.4 percent per decade relative to the 1981 to 2010 average. From the linear trend, the loss of sea ice is about 77,000 square kilometers (30,000 square miles) per year, equivalent to losing the state of South Dakota or the country of Austria annually.

“Every year brings something new for the Arctic Ocean,” said NSIDC senior research scientist Walt Meier. “This summer we saw very early ice loss in Hudson Bay, open water near the North Pole and a stubborn ice floe near the Bering Strait that persisted through the summer melt season. While it wasn’t a new record low, this year’s sea ice minimum is yet another example of a changed Arctic environment."

NSIDC scientists stress that the Arctic sea ice extent number is preliminary, as continued melt conditions could still push the ice extent lower. NSIDC will issue a full analysis at the beginning of October addressing the possible causes behind this year’s ice conditions.

In the Antarctic, sea ice extent tracked at its second lowest level in the satellite record for most of the growth season. Fluctuations in extent are typical of Antarctic sea ice extent near the seasonal maximum, but a record low maximum is unlikely. The maximum for Antarctic sea ice typically occurs in late September or early October, but has been reached as early as August 30.