+ Visit NASA.gov + Advanced Search   + About the Server   + Animation List   + How to Use the Server   + RSS Feeds   + Podcasts   + Opportunities Previous Animation Next Animation Minimum Sea Ice Comparison: 2005, 2007 and the 1979-2007 Average for Science-on-a-Sphere (SOS) Sea ice is frozen seawater floating on the surface of the ocean. Some sea ice is semi-permanent, persisting from year to year, and some is seasonal, melting and refreezing from season to season. The sea ice cover reaches its minimum extent at the end of each summer and the remaining ice is called the perennial ice cover. The 2007 Arctic summer sea ice reached the lowest extent of perennial ice cover on record - nearly 25% less than the previous low set in 2005. The area of the perennial ice has been steadily decreasing since the satellite record began in 1979, at a rate of about 10% per decade. But the 2007 minimum, reached on September 14, is far below the previous record made in 2005 and is about 38% lower than the climatological average. Such a dramatic loss has implications for ecology, climate and industry. A full global version of this animation was developed for a Science-on-a-Sphere exhibit. The animation is shown on a plane with a geographic (lat/lon) projection, but has been rotated 90 degrees so that the Arctic is in the center of the image. The animation compares the difference between the perennial sea ice minimum extent on September 21, 2005 and September 14, 2007. Both years are compared with the 1979-2007 average minimum sea ice.    This animation compares the minimum sea ice extent from 2005 and 2007 with the average minimum extent. Duration: 660.0 minutes Available formats:   2048x1024 (25 fps) MPEG-4   27 MB   2048x1024 (30 fps) Frames   320x160     PNG           239 KB   160x80       PNG           62 KB   80x40         PNG           16 KB   320x160 (30 fps) MPEG-1   1 MB   320x160 (30 fps) X-FLV       1 MB How to play our movies Animation Number: 3481 Completed: 2007-06-01 Animators: Cindy Starr (GST) (Lead)   Greg Shirah (NASA/GSFC) Scientist: Josefino Comiso (NASA/GSFC) Platforms/Sensors/Data Sets: DMSP/SSM/I   Comiso's September Minimum Sea Ice Concentration Data Collected: 2005-09-21, 2007-09-14, 1979-2007 Average Series: Science On a Sphere Keywords: DLESE >> Cryology GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Cryosphere GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Cryosphere >> Sea Ice GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Cryosphere >> Snow/Ice GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Oceans >> Sea Ice GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Cryosphere >> Sea Ice >> Ice Extent GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Cryosphere >> Sea Ice >> Sea Ice Concentration GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Cryosphere >> Snow/Ice >> Ice Extent GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Hydrosphere >> Snow/Ice >> Ice Extent GCMD >> EARTH SCIENCE >> Oceans >> Sea Ice >> Ice Extent     Please give credit for this item to: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio The Blue Marble data is courtesy of Reto Stockli (NASA/GSFC). Back to Top + Privacy Policy and Important Notices + Reproduction Guidelines NASA Official: Content Contact: Curator: