The average temperatures of the earth were hotter in June 2014 than at any other June since humans started keeping track—including the hottest ocean temperatures since record-keeping began more than 130 years ago. (Climate Central, News).
A vast expanse of permafrost in Siberia and Alaska continues to thaw to a greater extent each summer. The upper layer of permafrost, or the active layer, sometimes thaws in the summer. Recently, the active layer of permafrost has been observed to be getting larger with time, which means more permafrost is melting each summer. (Melting Permafrost) and (IOPScience)
The extent of Arctic Ocean sea ice should be measured in decades not “since 2011.” And SEA ice is not a permanent feature, in fact, “During the second half of June 2014, the rate of sea ice loss in the Arctic was the second fastest in the satellite data record… In general there has been a trend over the satellite data record towards earlier melt onset in the Arctic.” (Arctic Sea Ice News) In fact the extent of sea ice covering the Arctic Ocean at the end of the summer season 2014 likely wonʼt surpass the record low of 2012, but 2014 will still likely rank as one of the lowest minimum extents (or areas) in the record books—the fifth lowest since 1978. (Artic Sea Ice Will Be Among 10 Lowest) and (Unfrozen Polar Ice Sheet Retreats Again)
Meanwhile down in Antarctica, SEA ice surrounding Antarctica is just as ephemeral and vanishes as annually as it appears—it melts to nearly nothing from November to March, see (Video) Stronger average winds have arisen which probably drive the increase in ephemeral annual sea ice by creating more open areas for ice to form, combined with changing salinity (salt content) from the ice melting on land. Melting ice shelves from land may also help shield the surface from warmer water moving into that area.
LAND ice in glaciers and permafrost are what climatologists are most concerned with. The LAND ice in glaciers and permafrost continues to decline in the Antarctica, Greenland and Northern Siberia. (Sea Ice Melt Ice Sheet Loss)
Arctic ocean waves are at record heights, which helps ENSURE the break up of sea ice annually, not that SEA ice gains are anything but ephemeral to begin with, as noted in 4) above.
Stronger winds continue to drive an ocean circulation pattern that brings up warm water, which is nibbling away at the base of glaciers along the shorelines: (Antarctic Melting Myths)
So, when you get a chance, consider this 2014 info…
Warming Oceans, Alaskan Fisheries in Danger of Economic Collapse
“What we are seeing in the Northwest Territories this year is an indicator of what to expect with climate change,” Deadly combination of drought and summer lightning strikes have led to a particularly severe fire season in eastern Washington and Oregon, some of the Westʼs biggest blazes are in Canadaʼs Northwest Territories, where the total acreage burned so far this year is six times the 25-year average. In recent years, twice as much Canadian forest has been burning annually as in the 1970s, says University of Alberta wildland fire professor Mike Flannigan, and the northwestern part of the country is experiencing its hottest, driest summer in half a century. (Canadaʼs Boreal Forests are Burning and Releasing Loads of Carbon).
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