The Arctic sea ice is now at the peak of the melt season. Although ice extent is below average, it seems less likely that extent will approach last year’s record low, a news feed from the NSIDC reads.
A number of researchers in June this year said the amount of ice in the Arctic was about to reach a new low. Since then, however, the ice layers have grown, leaving the North without imminent danger of becoming ice-free this summer.
At the same time, the researcher do not exclude that the situation might again change radically in August. There are still about six weeks of ice melting remaining this year.
Despite the slower ice melting this July, the ice layers in the Arctic still are far thinner than the average for the last years. While the ice today cover a 7,7 million square meters area, the normal since 1979 is 8,9 million square meters, Aftenposten reports.
Photos: Barentsphoto.com
