This summer’s Arctic sea-ice shrank to its second lowest ever extent in the era of satellite observation.
The floes withdrew to just under 3.74 million sq km (1.44 million sq miles) last week, preliminary data indicates.
The only time this minimum has been beaten in the 42-year spacecraft record was 2012 when the pack ice was reduced to 3.41 million sq km.
Shorter autumn days and encroaching cold mean the floes are now starting to regrow.
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Photo credit: MOSAIC/AWI/STEFFEN GRAUPNER
A national environmental organization on Monday threatened to sue Gov. Gavin Newsom to halt all new permits for gas and oil wells in the state, saying the governor has failed to protect Californians and the environment from hazards and pollutants released by the state’s billion-dollar petroleum industry.
In a letter sent to Newsom on Monday, the Center for Biological Diversity accused his administration of being friendly to California’s oil industry and issuing new permits without proper environmental reviews. The organization plans to take legal action unless the Democratic governor “promptly direct[s] your regulators to halt permitting.”
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Photo Credit: Brian van der Brug | Los Angeles Times