Zack LabeJun 28, 2023

Well, the absolute magnitude of the #Antarctic sea ice anomaly has now tied the largest on record...

More graphs here: https://zacklabe.com/antarctic-sea-ice-extentconcentration/.

Note that while sea ice is growing (austral winter), it's happening much slower than typical.

I am using the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) 5-day running mean (https://nsidc.org/data/seaice_index/faq). Data from https://nsidc.org/data/seaice_index.

Antarctic: Sea-Ice Concentration/Extent/Thickness

Near real-time visualizations [Arctic Climate Seasonality and Variability] [Arctic Sea-Ice Extent and Concentration] [Arctic Sea-Ice Volume and Thickness] [Arctic Temperatures] [Antarctic Sea-Ice E…

Zachary Labe
Show threadZack LabeJun 28, 2023

The current anomaly is over 2.5 million square kilometers below average.

For more context on this extreme event - check out these great articles and media coverage:
+ https://thebulletin.org/2023/06/uncharted-territory-warming-oceans-and-disappearing-sea-ice-alarm-scientists/
+ https://abc.net.au/news/2023-05-31/antarctic-sea-ice-hits-another-record-low/102391534
+ https://wired.com/story/antarctic-sea-ice-is-at-record-lows-is-it-an-alarming-shift/
+ https://seznamzpravy.cz/clanek/zahranicni-co-se-deje-v-antarktide-expert-popsal-proc-vedce-znervoznuje-ubytek-ledu-232681
+ https://meereisportal.de/en/news-overview/news-detail-view/antarctic-sea-ice-extent-at-a-seasonal-low
+ http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/2023/06/springing-into-summer/

‘Uncharted territory’: Warming oceans and disappearing sea ice alarm scientists

Since 1971, the Earth has absorbed the heat equivalent of over 6 billion atomic explosions of the size that decimated Hiroshima in 1945.

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Show threadDewi Le BarsJun 30, 2023
@ZLabe I have seen a lot of interesting speculations about the heat wave in the North Atlantic but not so much for this extreme low Antarctic sea ice. I guess we just gave up trying to understand Antarctic sea ice 😅
Show threadZack Labe
@DewiLeBars I am not sure I understand. Most of those articles provide explanations, like this year's strength and position of the Amundsen Sea Low.
Jun 30, 2023 at 11:10amWeb
Show threadDewi Le BarsJun 30, 2023
@ZLabe yes indeed that is one mechanism, the discussion feels less lively though.
Show threadZack LabeJun 30, 2023
@DewiLeBars I keep telling my polar colleagues to instead work on the Southern Hemisphere 😅