"Ice Continent" Antarctica melts at historic rates this year

ANTARCTICA - FEBRUARY 26: Melting icebergs are seen on Horseshoe Island as Turkish scientists conduct fieldwork on Horseshoe Island within 7th National Antarctic Science Expedition under the coordination of the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TUBITAK) MAM Polar Research Institute with the joint responsibilities of the Turkish Presidency and Turkish Ministry of Industry and Technology in Antarctica, on February 26, 2023. Turkish scientists sailed with the 80-meter Chilean-flagged research ship "Betanzos" for nearly a month as part of the 7th National Antarctic Science Expedition. During the voyage, Turkish scientists arrived at Horseshoe Island via a new transit channel developed in the Gullet and Barlas Channel, which was previously covered in ice due to melting sea ice caused by global climate change. The minimum width of sea ice in Antarctica for 2023 fell to 1.79 million square kilometers, the lowest level on record, on February 21. While this data is 1.05 million square kilometers below the 1981-2010 average, it also points out that a new record decrease is experienced every year. (Photo by Sebnem Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)