Arctic and Antarctic sea-ice information in February 2026

Arctic Sea Ice Information Monthly Report on Arctic Sea Ice

March 9, 2026

1. Arctic Sea Ice Conditions in February 2026

In February 2026, daily Arctic sea-ice extent ^{(note 1)} remained low with short-term fluctuations in both increases and decreases (Figure 1). As a result, the monthly mean Arctic sea-ice extent in February 2026 was 13.59 million square kilometers. This is about 0.4 million square kilometers larger than in 2025. However, it is still the third-lowest in the 48-year satellite record since 1979 (Figure 2). Sea-ice concentration was generally high except near the ice edge, and the distribution of sea ice was close to the 2010s mean level, except in the Sea of Okhotsk and Baffin Bay–Labrador Sea regions (Figure 3). In the Baffin Bay–Labrador Sea region, the southward expansion of sea ice was weak, resulting in the second-lowest sea-ice extent in the satellite record. The smaller sea-ice extent in the Sea of Okhotsk and Baffin Bay–Labrador Sea regions is thought to be one of the factors contributing to the relatively small Arctic sea-ice extent. Air temperatures around the Labrador Sea were 3–7°C above average (Figure 4). Similar to the previous month, warm conditions (2–3°C above average) and northeasterly to east winds were observed over the Sea of Okhotsk. By contrast, colder-than-average temperatures persisted over parts of the Canadian Archipelago and Alaska, and extended further into most of Russia. These atmospheric conditions likely contributed to the regional differences in sea-ice extent.

Figure 1: Arctic sea-ice extent from December 1, 2025, to March 1, 2026 (red), compared with the previous 47 years (from December 1 to April 30). The 2012–2013 period is shown in black, the 2024–2025 period in yellow, and other years as thin lines. The 2010s (2011–2019) mean is indicated by the black dashed line. Here, sea-ice extent was calculated using a five-day average.

Figure 2: Interannual variability in February mean Arctic sea-ice extent from 1979 to 2026. Years with insufficient data to calculate monthly means (1980–1981) were treated as missing sea-ice extent.

Figure 3: Arctic sea-ice extent (a) and concentration (b) averaged in February 2026. The orange line indicates the sea-ice edge (area with at least 15% sea-ice concentration) averaged over the 2010s.

Figure 4: (a) Air temperature anomalies (°C) at the 925 hPa relative to the 2010s mean for February 2026. Yellow-to-red and light blue-to-dark blue shading indicate warmer and colder than the 2010s mean, respectively. CAO: Central Arctic Ocean; CA: Canadian Archipelago. (b) Sea level pressure (hPa) and wind vectors (m s^–1) at the 925 hPa for February 2026. Data from NCEP-NCAR Reanalysis 1 ^{(note 2)} were used in this figure.

2. Antarctic Sea Ice Conditions in February 2026

In February 2026, daily Antarctic sea-ice extent decreased steadily, remaining at a level similar to the 2010s mean until mid-February, and then reached the annual minimum on February 24 (Figure 5). The monthly mean Antarctic sea-ice extent in February 2026 was 3.01 million square kilometers. This is about 0.68 million square kilometers larger than in 2025 and close to the 2010s mean (3.07 million square kilometers) (Figure 6). Sea-ice extent was close to the 2010s mean in the Weddell and Somov Sea, while it was below the 2010s mean in most other regions (Figure 7). As Antarctic sea ice typically begins to expand after the annual minimum, continued monitoring of sea-ice conditions will be important in the coming months.

Figure 5: Antarctic sea-ice extent from December 1, 2025, to March 1, 2026 (red), compared with the previous 47 years (from December 1 to April 30). The 2022–2023 period is shown in black, and other years are shown as thin lines. The 2010s (2011–2019) mean is indicated by the black dashed line. Here, sea-ice extent was calculated using a five-day average.

Figure 6: Interannual variability in February mean Antarctic sea-ice extent from 1979 to 2026. Years with insufficient data to calculate monthly means (1980–1981) were treated as missing sea-ice extent.

Figure 7: Antarctic sea-ice extent (a) and concentration (b) averaged in February 2026. The orange line indicates the sea-ice edge (area with at least 15% sea-ice concentration) averaged over the 2010s.

1: Sea-ice extent
For details on the calculation method of sea-ice extent, please refer to ADS . In this article, we used a five-day average.

2: NCEP-NCAR Reanalysis 1 (https://psl.noaa.gov/data/gridded/data.ncep.reanalysis.html) from Kalnay et al., The NCEP/NCAR 40-year reanalysis project, Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 77, 437-470, 1996