Arctic Winter Sea Ice Has Reached A Record Low

Arctic Winter Sea Ice. © Trent Schindler/NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio

For the second year in a row, Arctic winter sea ice has reached one of the lowest peak levels ever recorded since satellite tracking began in 1979.

On March 15, the ice extent measured 5.52 million square miles (14.29 million square kilometers), nearly the same as 2025’s peak of 5.53 million square miles (14.31 million square kilometers). Scientists say the two years are essentially tied.

Researchers found that this year continues a long-term decline seen over recent decades. The peak ice coverage was about half a million square miles (1.3 million square kilometers) below the average recorded between 1981 and 2010.

Sea ice extent refers to ocean areas where at least 15% of the surface is covered by ice. In winter, ice spreads as temperatures drop, and some of it usually survives the summer. However, less new ice has been forming in recent years, leading to a decrease in older, thicker multi-year ice.

In the Antarctic, summer sea ice dropped to 996,000 square miles (2.58 million square kilometers) on February 26. This is higher than the unusually low levels seen in the past four years, but still about 100,000 square miles (260,000 square kilometers) below the long-term average. It also remains above the record low set on February 21, 2023, when ice coverage fell to 691,000 square miles (1.79 million square kilometers).

source NASA