News & Stories

Across the globe, snow and ice play a vital role in regulating Earth’s climate and providing freshwater resources to people, plants, and animals.

As Earth’s frozen regions change rapidly, NSIDC is committed to growing its research and open access data to better understand these changes. Read about NSIDC research and its contribution to science and policy making. Check out spotlights on how to use NSIDC data, tools, and resources. Learn about how we steward data and collaborate with scientists and organizations across the world to understand how the frozen parts of Earth affect the rest of the planet and impact society.

News and stories

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Spotlight
Photographer and glaciologist Austin Post (1922-2012) sometimes lugged his large-format camera weighing more than 60 pounds up mountain trails to photograph glaciers.
Analysis - Sea Ice Today

Arctic sea ice is nearing its winter maximum and will soon begin its seasonal decline.

Analysis - Sea Ice Today

Arctic sea ice extent for January 2013 was well below average, largely due to extensive open water in the Barents Sea and near Svalbard. The Arctic Oscillation also remained in a primarily negative phase.

Melt map
Analysis - Ice Sheets Today
Greenland's surface melting in 2012 was intense, far in excess of any earlier year in the satellite record since 1979. In July 2012, a very unusual weather event occurred. For a few days, 97% of the entire ice sheet indicated surface melting.
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Spotlight
The extreme summer melt of 2012 caught many by surprise, and prompted NSIDC to develop a new Web site to help track Greenland’s ice. This site, Greenland Ice Sheet Today, features daily melt images and images showing cumulative melt days on the ice sheet.