In June, the Antarctic peninsula saw a heatwave with temperatures 20C above normal while scientists pointed to a France-sized area of open ocean<\/a> where ice should have been.<\/p>\n In early August when sea ice should be steadily expanding, a large area of the Amundsen Sea to the south of the Pacific lost ice.<\/p>\n Purich said changes in winds associated with the El Ni\u00f1o climate pattern in the tropical Pacific had likely played a role in reducing the sea ice in that region.<\/p>\n Dr Phil Reid, who monitors Antarctic conditions at Australia\u2019s Bureau of Meteorology, said El Ni\u00f1o tended to change the movement of storm systems around Antarctica leading some to be held in the same place, churning up the sea ice below.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up to Down to Earth<\/p>\n The planet’s most important stories. Get all the week’s environment news – the good, the bad and the essential<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n But he said even without an El Ni\u00f1o, \u201cI think we would still be in a similar position \u2026 and that is a bit disconcerting\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe atmosphere will play around a bit, but in the end thermodynamics wins. If the water is too warm, you won\u2019t have as much sea ice.\u201d<\/p>\n Purich said as Antarctica now emerged from its \u201cpolar night\u201d, sea ice reflects the sun\u2019s energy during the day. But less sea ice meant the Southern Ocean could take up more heat.<\/p>\n Loss of sea ice does not directly affect sea levels as it was already floating, but it can expose ice shelves to buffeting ocean extremes and weaken them.<\/p>\n Ice shelves slow down the advance of glaciers and the continent\u2019s vast ice sheet that has the potential to push up global sea levels by many metres if it reaches the ocean<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1790801897_995_500.jpg\")
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