Sea Ice

According to BBC analysis of data from the US National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), Global sea ice reached a record low.

• About Sea Ice: It refers to free-floating ice in the Polar Regions.

o It expands in winter and melts in summer, but some remains year-round.

o Different from icebergs, glaciers, ice sheets, and ice shelves, which form on land.

• Declining Arctic Sea Ice:

o 2025 decline due to: Delayed freezing in Hudson Bay (due to warmer ocean temperatures) → Storms breaking ice in Barents Sea and Bering Sea → Higher air temperatures (e.g., Svalbard, Norway) → Thinner, more fragile ice that is easily broken by storms.

• Fluctuating Antarctic Sea Ice: In 2025 low caused by: Warm air & sea temperatures at the end of the Southern Hemisphere summer → Ice-breaking winds (Antarctic ice is thinner, more mobile than Arctic ice) → Melting of Antarctic ice shelves due to ongoing ocean warming (British Antarctic Survey).
• Consequences of Sea Ice Decline: Less sea ice → more ocean exposure → more heat absorption → faster warming.