As NASA reveals stunning images, Antarctica had record low sea-ice coverage in 2017

NASA has released stunning photos of the Antarctic ice caps after its most recent expeditions last year.

Snow and ice on the Creswick Peaks. The light blue
areas on the cliff face indicate melting.

However, Antarctica had a record-low sea ice coverage of 6.61 million square kilometres in 2017, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in its latest report.

In November last year, NASA conducted two missions as part of its Operation IceBridge, which is in its ninth year of flights to map the snow and ice of Antarctica.

On November 4, the IceBridge team flew its "Endurance West" mission, which specifically targets sea ice. 

Then, on November 12, a high-priority mission was conducted over the Larsen C Ice Shelf, as it had been significantly reshaped a few months earlier after it shed an iceberg that measured 5060 square kilometres.

During each flight, nearly 8000 photographs were taken, which revealed several large fractures in the ice.

Read the story by Charles Goodsir in today’s Melbourne Age - “As NASA reveals stunning images, Antarctica had record low sea-ice coverage in 2017.”