Our Research

Sea ice in the Arctic appears to have reached its minimum extent for the year, according to scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). Sea ice extent fell to 5.10 million square kilometers (1.97 million square miles) on September 13, 2013, and has begun its seasonal autumn and winter growth.

In 2012, NSIDC faced a challenge: how to unleash the creative potential of software development in the service of science. Scientists and informatics researchers needed better tools, while NSIDC software developers wanted to stretch their coding skills and work with data in innovative ways.

Greenland's surface ice melt season reached a peak in late July, coinciding with a period of very warm weather. Greenland's melt season this year will be closer to average than was 2012, with far less melting in the northern ice sheet and at high elevations.

Through the Advanced Cooperative Arctic Data and Information Service (ACADIS) project, NSIDC, in collaboration with NCAR, has put together a data search tool that will make data search easier for scientists who study the Arctic.