Arctic sea ice appears likely to reach a record minimum extent this year; as Greg Laden says, "It is almost like the Earth is warming up or something." The lowest extent of Arctic sea ice on record (since observations began in 1979) occurred in 2012, the second-lowest in 2007, and the third-lowest in 2015. On Stoat, William M. Connolley says it's currently at an "all-time low for the time of year, but only just, which is better than its been for the last few months." While the fate of the entire human race may hinge on the effects of global warming, Connolley also has $10,000 on the line. Will the extent of sea ice drop below 3.1 million square kilometers this September? And will we experience ice-free Arctic summers in the near future?
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August sea ice extent in the Arctic this year was 640,000 square kilometers below the previous record set in 2007. It is also already a record monthly low for any month, though that record will not last as it is going to be broken this September when the lowest extent of the year is normally…
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Record ice loss in August
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We should be thankful. At least we have a lot of Arctic cap left, even going back to 2014.
“Some of the models suggest that there is a 75 percent chance that the ENTIRE NORTH POLAR ICE CAP, during some of the summer months, could be completely ICE-FREE within the next five to seven years.”
– Nobel Prize winner Al Gore, December 2009
I guess it's been long enough since See Noevo posted that I can stop waiting for a followup and just ask him/her, "Exactly what point did you think you were making there?"