Earthsky.org - 8/24/13, Deborah Byrd
Every year for many years now, scientists and others have kept an eye on the annual Arctic sea ice minimum, which occurs when the floating Arctic ice cap melts to its smallest size of the summer. That minimum usually comes around mid-September, and, although the ice is still melting this year as of this writing (August 23, 2013), it now appears unlikely that 2013 will break a new record for the least ice observed in the Arctic. At the same time, according to NASA:
… this year’s melt rates are in line with the sustained decline of the Arctic ice cover observed by NASA and other satellites over the last several decades.
Even if this year ends up being the sixth- or seventh-lowest extent, what matters is that the 10 lowest extents recorded have happened during the last 10 years. The long-term trend is strongly downward.
