The polar ice caps are one of the critical elements of the polar climate system. It has been a center of study in modern years, mostly because of a substantial decrease in the Arctic sea ice covering and modeling results that show that global warming could be increased in the Arctic due to ice-albedo feedback. A satellite-based data recording beginning in late 1978 reveals that fast transitions have occurred in the Arctic, where the ice coverage has been decreasing at a visible rate. In opposition, in the Antarctic, the sea ice cover has been growing. Tyler Morgen made an incredible animation that shows the daily polar sea ice area over the past 32 years. Daily polar sea ice area with monthly ice extent from 1988 to 2020
Exploring the Planet & Ourselves