the opposite is also possible

White surfaces, like snow and ice,are very effective at reflecting the sun's energy back into space,while darker land and water surfaces absorb much more incoming sunlight.When the Arctic warms just a little,some of the snow and ice melts,exposing the ground and ocean underneath.The increased heat absorbed by these surfaces causes even more melting,and so on.And although the current situation in the Arctic follows the warming pattern,the opposite is also possible.A small drop in temperatures would cause more freezing,increasing the amount of reflective snow and ice.