Update 20150527.
Changes from 20150520.
Extent: -362.1 (-442k vs 2014, -748k vs 2013, -564k vs 2012)
Area: -393.4 (-232k vs 2014, -544k vs 2013, -280k vs 2012)
Declines in Arctic sea ice continue at a steady pace, -50k/day for total extent and -55k/day for total area. Regionally (see also the attached delta map) the melting was greatest in the Barents and Kara regions, the Beaufort and Chukchi regions and the Hudson Bay region.
The latter contributes now nearly half of the difference in extent between 2014 and 2015, with the remainder mostly in the other peripheral regions.
Within the Arctic Basin (CAB+Beaufort+Chukchi+ESS+Laptev), 2015 and 2014 are about the same: -10k by extent and +15k by area.
Melting did start in the some area's in the Beaufort, Chukchi and ESS. Total melt area (as indicated by the ADS-NIPR AMSR2 maps) is less than in 2013 and 2014 though.
In summary, the increased melting in the Beaufort and Chukchi is still compensated by the stronger ice condition in the rest of the Basin, with a focus in the Laptev region. Are the differences more important or will 2015 show that in the end the similarities are counting?
You will find the updated graphs in the
top postThe details (in 1000 km
2):
Extent:
Central Arctic Basin East Siberian Sea Laptev Sea
-11.9 -1.4 -0.3
Kara Sea Barents Sea Greenland Sea
-60.0 -61.4 -12.0
Baffin/Newfoundland Bay St. Lawrence Hudson Bay
-28.5 0.4 -40.3
Canadian Archipelago Beaufort Sea Chukchi Sea
-3.0 -35.0 -49.0
Bering Sea Sea of Okhotsk Total Extent
-25.5 -34.3 -362.1
Area:
Central Arctic Basin East Siberian Sea Laptev Sea
-15.8 -5.9 -8.4
Kara Sea Barents Sea Greenland Sea
-56.1 -57.3 -15.0
Baffin/Newfoundland Bay St. Lawrence Hudson Bay
-23.3 0.3 -49.0
Canadian Archipelago Beaufort Sea Chukchi Sea
-0.9 -36.8 -77.0
Bering Sea Sea of Okhotsk Total Area
-19.5 -28.7 -393.4