Shown below are up-to-date satellite observations of the sea ice covers of both the Arctic and the Antarctic, along with comparisons with the historical satellite record of more than 4 decades.

In the Arctic, the annual minimum sea ice extent occurs in September and the annual sea ice maximum extent occurs in March. In the Antarctic, the minimum extent occurs in February and the maximum occurs in September.

A graph and an animated time series showing the annual Arctic sea ice minimum extent each September since 1979, derived from satellite observations.

On September 11, Arctic sea ice likely reached its annual minimum extent of 4.28 million square kilometers (1.65 million square miles). The 2024 minimum is the seventh lowest in the nearly 46-year satellite record.

The ice cover in the Arctic grows throughout the winter, before peaking in March. Melting picks up pace during the spring as the sun gets stronger, and in September the extent of the ice cover is typically only around one third of its winter maximum.