Sea Ice Maximum/Operation IceBridge Live Shots

Just three months into 2016 and already global temperatures – particularly in the Arctic – are far warmer than normal. Global temperatures for February were the warmest on record for that month.

Nowhere is this warming trend felt more than in the Arctic where the unusual wintertime warmth has contributed to record low wintertime sea ice extent. Arctic sea ice keeps the Polar Regions cold and helps regulate global temperatures. The shrinking of sea ice is a key indicator of our planet’s health. NASA is monitoring the health of the Arctic from space and the ground. In the coming days NASA will launch two missions – Operation Ice Bridge and OMG (Oceans Melting Greenland). These airborne and ground campaigns to the Arctic will take measurements of sea ice and glacier thickness.

Join NASA scientists on Friday, March 25 from 6:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. EDT to see new images of this year’s sea ice extent; talk about how the Arctic faired this winter; and find out the latest on NASA missions to the Arctic set to launch in the coming days.

Suggested Questions:

1. What do the latest images show us about this year’s winter in the Arctic?

2. What do the images tell us about the long-term trend?

3. NASA is getting ready to send out teams of scientists to the Arctic in the coming days. What will they be doing?

4. Where can we learn more?

*** To book a window contact*** Michelle Handleman / michelle.z.handleman@nasa.gov

Click for sea ice Flickr gallery.

See the following sources:

• nasa.gov/earth
• nasa.gov/icebridge