Author(s): John C. Falkingham; Richard Chagnon; Steve Mccourt
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Keywords: No Keywords
Abstract: Observational evidence indicates that there has been a significant reduction of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean over the past few decades lending support to predictions of global climate models that there will be less sea ice in the northern hemisphere in the future. To add to the global body of knowledge about the state of sea ice, the Canadian Ice Service has digitized its weekly sea ice charts spanning the Canadian Arctic over the period 1969 to 2001. Preliminary results from the analysis of this database were presented in 2001 indicating a general reduction in the extent of the sea ice in the Canadian Arctic during 1969–1998. This paper updates the previous analysis and strengthens the conclusions that the coverage of sea ice in the Canadian Arctic in the summer months has decreased by about 15% in the Arctic areas, roughly north of 60N over the period 1969–2001. In the Canadian sub-Arctic areas of Hudson Bay and the Labrador Sea, the coverage of sea ice during the summer has decreased by 40% and72% respectively over the period 1971–2001.
Year: 2002