Notice. Good environmental cooperation between Russia and Norway is important for taking care of the environment and managing the resources in the north. Due to Russia's war of attacks on Ukraine, government cooperation between the Norway and Russia has been reduced to a minimum and bilateral environmental cooperation has been put on hold until further notice. Hence, update of the Barentsportal concerning the environmental status for the Barents Sea has been put on hold.

Arctic Sea Ice Reaches 2019 Minimum Extent

Arctic sea ice likely reached its 2019 minimum extent of 1.60 million square miles (4.15 million square kilometers) on Sept. 18, tied for second lowest summertime extent in the satellite record, according to NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center. The Arctic sea ice cap is an expanse of frozen seawater floating on top of the Arctic Ocean and neighboring seas. Every year, it expands and thickens during the fall and winter and grows smaller and thinner during the spring and summer. But in the past decades, increasing temperatures have caused marked decreases in the Arctic sea ice extents in all seasons, with particularly rapid reductions in the minimum end-of-summer ice extent. The shrinking of the Arctic sea ice cover can ultimately affect local ecosystems, global weather patterns, and the circulation of the oceans.

Download video: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13309

Music: Hiraeth by Anthony Edwin Phillips [PRS], James Edward Collins

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Animation showing the arctic sea ice extent in september from 1979 to 2020

Animation showing the Arctic sea ice extent in march from 1979 to 2020.