LONDON — The North Pole will turn into an open sea during summer within a decade, according to data released Wednesday by a team of explorers who trekked through the Arctic for three months.
The Catlin Arctic Survey team led by explorer Pen Hadow measured the ice thickness this year. Their findings show most of the ice in the region is first-year ice that is only about 6 feet deep and will melt next summer. The region has traditionally contained thicker multiyear ice that does not melt as rapidly.
Professor Peter Wadhams, part of the Polar Ocean Physics Group at the University of Cambridge which analyzed the data, said it supports the new consensus that the Arctic will be ice-free in summer within 20 years and that much of the decrease will happen within 10 years.
