New analysis: global sea ice suffered major losses in 2016

A visualization of Arctic sea ice during March of 2016. The red line marks the long-term average extent of ice. On this date, sea ice reached a record low wintertime maximum extent. It was the second straight year that a record low was set in winter — a highly unusual event. (Source: NASA Goddard's Scientific Visualization Studio/C. Starr) The extent of sea ice globally took major hits during 2016, according to an analysis released yesterday by the National Snow and Ice Data Center. At both poles, "a wave of new record lows were set for both daily and monthly extent," according to the analysis. In recent years, Arctic sea ice has been hit particularly hard. "It has been so crazy up there, not just this autumn and winter, but it's a repeat of last autumn and winter too," says Mark Serreze, director of the NSIDC. In years past, abnormal warmth and record low sea ice extent tended to occur most frequently during the warmer months of the year. But for the past two years, things have gotten really weird in the colder months. In 2015, Serreze says, "you had this amazing heat wave, and you got to the melting point at the North Pole on New Years Eve. And we've had a repeat this autumn and winter — an absurd heat wave, and sea ice at record lows." Lately, the Southern Hemisphere has been getting into the act. "Now, Antarctic sea ice is very, very low," Serreze says. From the NSIDC analysis: