Sea ice in Antarctica (Source: Pixabay) © ANSA / Ansa
On February 25, 2022, the extent of sea ice in Antarctica hit a new record low: for the first time since satellite observations of the poles began in 1978, it fell below 2 million square kilometers. This is the second time in 5 years, after 2017, that Antarctic ice has reversed growth trend. Now, a study by China’s Sun Yatsen University and the Guangdong Laboratory for Marine Science and Engineering of the Southern Hemisphere, published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, has some causes for the anomaly related to La Nina weather phenomena and the Antarctic Oscillation identified .
Using data from 1979 to 2022 from the US National Data Center for Snow and Ice (NSIDC), the researchers analyzed the sea ice balance i.e. the amounts lost and gained. The authors of the study determined that in summer the heat transport to the South Pole and the greater heat absorption by the icefree water dominate the processes, which accelerates melting. In the spring, however, the northward drift of the ice in the Amundsen Sea also comes into play, pushing it to lower latitudes and thus towards higher temperatures.
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