Global Warming

Arctic sea ice hits record low

Arctic sea ice has reached its lowest winter point since satellite observations began in the late 1970s, raising concerns about faster ice melt and rising seas due to global warming, US officials have said.

The maximum extent of sea ice observed was 5.6 million square miles (14.5 million square kilometres) on February 25, earlier than scientists had expected, said the report by the National Snow and Ice Data Centre yesterday.

Below-average ice conditions were observed everywhere except in the Labrador Sea and Davis Strait. The sea ice was about 425,000 square miles below the average from 1981 to 2010, a loss equal to more than twice the size of Sweden. It was also 50,200 square miles below the previous lowest maximum that occurred in 2011.

Environmentalists said the report offered more evidence of worsening global warming, and urged action to curb the burning of fossil fuels that send greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.