**** Info via Environment Canada
Record Warmth in Antarctica
It’s the end of summer in the southern hemisphere, a time when Antarctica usually experiences a rapid drop in temperature. However, the continent just recently experienced record warm temperatures. On March 18, at the Concordia station, which is located at an altitude of 3233 m, the temperature hit -11.8°C. The normal temperature at Concordia this time of year is around -58°C, a whopping 46°C above the seasonal normal!
It is notoriously difficult for this area of Antarctica to get any hint of warmth. The constant snow cover reflects any incoming warmth from the sun. With the location being 1100 km inland, rarely any incoming storms bring ocean warmth. The result is generally a very consistent and stable temperature on a seasonal and day-to-day basis.
So why are these warm temperatures near the South Pole?
A deep and powerful atmospheric river, originating near the southeast of Australia, resulted in a tongue of warm air pushing across East Antarctica’s vast and snow-covered landscape. This tongue of warmth carried heat all the way to the South Pole. However, a phenomenon of this intensity is extremely rare.
This warmth comes at a time when the March ice extent in Antarctica is the lowest on record. If the ice pack continues to melt, the continent’s glaciers will continue to collapse, dumping ice into the ocean and exacerbating the issue of global sea level rise.
To learn more about ice near the North Pole, visit the Canadian Ice Service.
