The decrease of Arctic sea ice, minimum extent in 1982 and 2007, and climate projections

Description

Satellite observations of the September extent of sea ice in the Arctic shows in 2007 shows a 23% decrease from the previous minimum, in 2005, and 39% below the average minimum extent for the time period 1979-2000. The bottom part of this graphic shows the development according to the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA) and the merging of five global climate models – the resultant projections shows successive decreases for this century. The Arctic sea ice represents a habitat for wildlife, a climate change indicator and an important factor in the global circulation systems. This graphic is also available in Norwegian.