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Global Snow and Ice ReportMay 2010
NH Snow Cover Extent
Data were provided by the Global Snow Laboratory, Rutgers University. Period of record is 1967-2010 (44 years).
The average Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent during May 2010 was 4.3 million square kilometers (1.7 million square miles) below average, resulting in the smallest May snow cover extent on record. The average Northern Hemisphere May snow cover extent for the 1967-2010 period of record is 19.5 million square kilometers (7.5 million square miles). Snow cover extent during March–May 2010 was 2.1 million square kilometers (0.8 million square miles) below the 1967-2010 average and the fourth smallest Northern Hemisphere spring snow cover extent on record. The 44-year average spring snow cover extent for the period of record is 19.6 million square kilometers (7.6 million square miles).
Across North America, snow cover for May 2010 was 1.6 million square kilometers (0.6 million square miles) below average—the lowest May snow cover extent since satellite records began in 1967. The small snow extent can be attributed to the anomalously warm conditions that engulfed much of North America during May and the previous month of April. The average North American May snow cover extent is 9.44 million square kilometers (3.6 million square miles) for the 1967-2010 period of record. North American snow cover extent averaged for spring was also at a record low extent — 1.5 million square kilometers (0.6 million square miles) below the 1967-2010 average.
Anomalously warm temperatures were present over much of Eurasia during May, especially in the higher latitudes. The warm temperatures during the month contributed to Eurasia having the lowest May snow cover extent in the 1967-2010 period of record. Snow covered 2.7 million square kilometers (1.0 million square miles) less than the 1967-2010 average snow cover extent of 10.1 million square kilometers (3.9 million square miles). Above-average snow cover in March, near-average in April, and much below-average in May caused Eurasia to have a spring snow cover extent anomaly of 0.6 million square kilometers below average— the 14th smallest spring snow cover extent on record. The 44-year Eurasian spring snow cover extent average is 17.4 million square kilometers (6.7 million square miles).
Sea Ice Extent
Arctic sea ice continued its annual retreat during May. According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), the Arctic sea ice extent retreated at a rapid pace — 50 percent faster than the average May melting rate. The Arctic ice had a late-growth spurt during March, which resulted in large areas of thin ice. Above average temperatures across most of the Arctic during May melted the late growth ice quickly. The average May 2010 Northern Hemisphere sea ice extent was 13.10 million square kilometers (5.1 million square miles) or 3.68 percent (0.5 million square kilometers[0.2 million square miles]) below the 1971-2000 average, resulting in the ninth lowest May Arctic sea ice extent in the period of record. Much of the May melting occurred in the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhostk. The average May Arctic sea ice extent has decreased at an average rate of 2.4 percent per decade since 1979.
During May, the Southern Hemisphere ice continued its annual growth cycle, with May 2010 ice extent 7.3 percent above the 1979-2000 average. This marks the fourth largest May Southern Hemisphere ice extent on record. Southern Hemisphere sea ice extent for May has increased at an average rate of 2.4 percent per decade.
For further information on the Northern and Southern Hemisphere snow and ice conditions, please visit the NSIDC News page, provided by NOAA's National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC).
