Despite being at opposite points of the annual cycle, the Arctic and Antarctic had something in common in March 2017: record-low sea ice extents.
This year's Iditarod sled dog race is underway, but it was forced to start hundreds of miles farther north than usual due to poor snow conditions.
Arctic sea ice on track to be among smallest winter maximums on record
February 17, 2017
Springtime melting and retreating sea ice allowed more sunlight to reach the upper layers of the ocean, stimulating widespread blooms of algae and other tiny marine plants which form the base of the marine food chain: a sign of the rapid changes occurring in a warming Arctic.
In 2016, daily temperatures in Alaska that were warmer than average outnumbered those that were cooler than average by a 9 to 1 ratio.
Although surface melt did not set a new record in 2016, the Greenland Ice Sheet did continue a long-term trend of decreasing mass, according to the latest Arctic Report Card from NOAA and its partners.
A black swan event is a situation so rare that few people would have imagined it was possible. In November 2016, researchers were caught off guard by just such an event: extremely low sea ice extents in both the Arctic and Antarctic.
Northwest Passage clear of ice again in 2016
September 16, 2016
Arctic sea ice ties for second lowest in 2016
September 15, 2016
In the 2015 edition of the State of the Climate report, climate and biology experts wrote about some dramatic impacts of warming on life in the ocean.