Scientists recently developed a new modeling approach to
estimate sea ice thickness. This is the only model based
entirely on historical observations. The model was developed by
scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey and the Russian
Academy of Sciences, Moscow. Using this new technique, the
thickness of Arctic sea ice was estimated from 1982 to 2003.
Results showed that average ice thickness and total ice volume
fluctuated together during the early study period, peaking in
the late 1980s and then declining until the mid-1990s.
Thereafter, ice thickness slightly increased but the total
volume of sea ice did not increase. A New Way to Model Sea Ice
Thickness Scientists propose that the volume stayed constant
during the study's latter years because while the ice was
thickening in the high latitudes of the Arctic, the surrounding
sea ice was melting. Sea ice, however, can only become so thick,
and if Arctic sea ice continues to melt, the total volume of sea
ice in the Arctic will decrease. The most dramatic l