NSIDC: Lowest December Arctic sea ice extent in satellite record
The cold may make the news, but it ain't the story.
Arctic sea ice extent for December 2010 was the lowest in the satellite record for that month.
The National Snow and Ice Data Center has released its December report on Arctic sea ice. The human-driven decline continues, spurred by a strong negative phase of the Arctic Oscillation, which leads to this regional air temperature anomaly:
Parts of Canada are astoundingly warm. Nunatsiaq Online reports:
… temperatures around South Baffin reached record highs as much as 20 degrees (centigrade) above normal. Iqaluit set new records with temperatures rising to +1.2 °C, Jan. 3, breaking the record of —1.7 °C set in 1970, said Yvonne Bilan-Wallace, a meteorologist with Environment Canada.
Jan. 4, 2011, saw another new record for the capital with a high of +1.5 °C, breaking the old mark of —1.1 °C set in 1969.
“The normal around this time of year is around -22 °C,” she said. “So yeah, you’re way above normal.” [talk about droll]
Pangnirtung also set a record high temperature, peaking at +8 °C Jan. 4, shattering an old record of —3.7 °C set in 2002. Kimmirut hit +1 °C Jan. 4, breaking a previous record high of —5.5 °C.
Bilan-Wallace said Environment Canada is still issuing marine forecasts for the Hudson Strait because temperatures in the area have been so warm.
Normally, such forecasts would end in November or December.
The disinformers like to focus on where it’s cold, which happens to be where most of the people of, but where it’s hot looks to be more consequential, given the impacts of melting ice in both the Arctic and Greenland.
The cold may make the news, but it ain’t the story.
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