When we last checked in to the Nansen Sea Ice Graphs, it looked
like they were heading towards the “normal” line in a hurry. Ice
area seems to still be on that trend, while extent seems to be
leveling off it’s growth rate. Area appears to be within about
200,000 square kilometers of the 1979-2007 monthly average and
still climbing. Of course the fact that the 2007 data is
included in the average line, means the average is a lower than
usual target than one might expect. If we compare to ice area
over at Cryopshere today, they use a 1979-2000 mean, which is
higher. Still the rebound we are seeing is impressive. Sea ice
extent looks like this: These graphs will automatically update,
so check back often. For those of you wondering, here is the
difference between area and extent, as described in the NSIDC
FAQ’s page: What is the difference between sea ice area and
extent? Why does NSIDC use extent measurements? Area and extent
are different measures and give scientists slightly different
information. Some organiz