Energy & Science
Arctic Sea Ice Shrank to Its Second-Lowest Level on Record
The frozen area in September was 40% below the historical average.
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Arctic sea ice covered 3.7 million square kilometers (1.4 million square miles) in September, the smallest area this year and the second-smallest since satellite monitoring began four decades ago.
The figure marks the second time that Arctic sea ice dropped below 4 million square kilometers, according to data released Monday by the U.S.’s National Snow and Ice Data Center. The all-time low was registered on September 17, 2012, when the ice shrank to 3.4 million square kilometers.