Arctic & Antarctic Sea Ice Monitor

How much ocean is covered by sea ice at each pole — updated daily from NSIDC satellite data.

Arctic · sea ice area
Antarctic · sea ice area

Days lower than ever on that date

In 2026, how many days had less ice than on that same date in any year since 1979? That is different from “less than usual for this time of year” (the comparison under the big numbers above).

Arctic
Antarctic
Arctic decadal trend
M km² per decade (annual mean)
Winter max (Arctic)
Jan–Apr peak

Seasonal extent cycle

Recent records & events