CH SCIENCE

If dwelled upon the updates of Arctic ice, one can find that the Arctic loses 30,000 square miles of sea ice each year. Last year's melting rate was very high and the NASA scientists had reported a record low in the amount of ice available.

It is expected that this year, the state of affairs would not be so bad and long-term trend of depleting ice would witness some relief.

NASA scientists have been studying the melting rates of Arctic ice since decades. In 1980s, it was seen that the ice cap was about the size of the lower 48 states. Unfortunately, it has lost half of its size. The worst thing that can happen now is that the Arctic can be free from ice completely within next 30 to 50 years.

It was noticed in 2012 that the ice cap of the Arctic Ocean reduced to its lowest extent ever recorded.

According to Walt Meier, a glaciologist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md, "This is not going to be as extreme a year as last year, but we're still seeing a strong downward trend. We're still at levels that are much lower than average".

The NASA scientists keep on overseeing and monitoring the level of ice on Arctic.