In 2018, the National Snow and Ice Data Center noted that the amount of multi-year ice remaining this summer was the sixth lowest on record.Īs the Suomi NPP and NOAA-20 satellites fly over the Arctic, they collect valuable information about the ocean and atmosphere.īy tracking clouds using Channel 15 of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite ( VIIRS ) onboard each satellite, researchers can see how the clouds are moving, which helps to estimate wind speed and direction. Arctic sea ice usually reaches its minimum around mid-September each year. Multi-year ice is thicker and has survived at least one melt season, whereas first-year ice is much thinner. In addition, Goldberg said NOAA uses data from the microwave imager onboard the Japanese Space Agency's Global Change Observation Mission â€“ Climate (GCOM-C) satellite.Įach year, data from these satellites help ice analysts estimate the total sea ice extent as well as differentiate between first-year and multi-year ice. Using the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) on-board NOAA-20 and Suomi NPP, researchers can monitor sea ice extent throughout the year even under cloudy skies, explained Mitch Goldberg, a JPSS program scientist. Over the past four decades, scientists have seen a steep decline in both the amount and thickness of Arctic sea ice during the summer and winter months. Instead it's all ice that's floating on top of the Arctic Ocean. Unlike Antarctica, there's no land at the North Pole.

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