Sea Ice Index, Version 3
The Sea Ice Index provides a quick look at Arctic- and Antarctic-wide changes in sea ice. It is a source for consistent, up-to-date sea ice extent and concentration images, in PNG format, and data values, in GeoTIFF and ASCII text files, from November 1978 to the present. Sea Ice Index images also depict trends and anomalies in ice cover calculated using a 30-year reference period of 1981 through 2010.
The images and data are produced in a consistent way that makes the Index time-series appropriate for use when looking at long-term trends in sea ice cover. Both monthly and daily products are available. However, monthly products are better to use for long-term trend analysis because errors in the daily product tend to be averaged out in the monthly product and because day-to-day variations are often the result of short-term weather.
This is the most recent version of these data.
Updated the method used to calculate the monthly average sea ice extent and area data values.
COMPREHENSIVE Level of Service
Data: Data integrity and usability verified; data customization services available for select data
Documentation: Key metadata and comprehensive user guide available
User Support: Assistance with data access and usage; guidance on use of data in tools and data customization services
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Geographic Coverage |
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As a condition of using these data, you must cite the use of this data set using the following citation. For more information, see our Use and Copyright Web page.
Fetterer, F., K. Knowles, W. N. Meier, M. Savoie, and A. K. Windnagel. 2017, updated daily. Sea Ice Index, Version 3. [Indicate subset used]. Boulder, Colorado USA. NSIDC: National Snow and Ice Data Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.7265/N5K072F8. [Date Accessed].