Arctic Sea Ice’s Alarming Retreat Continues in 2024

Arctic sea ice coverage in 2024 decreased to 6 million square miles, continuing a 46-year trend of shrinkage and thinning.

Sea ice at the top of the planet continued to shrink and thin in 2024. The maximum winter ice coverage in the Arctic Ocean is consistent with an ongoing 46-year decline.

Analysis of satellite observations has revealed that the total area of the Arctic Ocean covered in sea ice reached 6 million square miles (15.65 million square kilometers) on March 14. That’s 247,000 square miles (640,000 square kilometers) less ice than the average maximum extent between 1981 and 2010. Overall, the maximum winter ice coverage in the Arctic has shrunk by an area equivalent to the size of Alaska since 1979.