Sea Ice

Stunning images of sea ice formations have been published by Wired, capturing the Wilkins ice shelf on the Antarctic Peninsula and other areas of eerie natural beauty. “Floating sea ice covers about 11 million square miles of Earth’s oceans in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. It plays an important role in regulating climate and is critical for many animals. Glaciers and Ice sheets cover around 10 percent of the land area on Earth. Every continent except Australia is partially covered in ice. Despite its extent and importance, the nature of the cryosphere makes it difficult to visit, study and understand. Because of the remote and harsh conditions throughout most of the polar regions, scientists who study them often have to rely on data collected from space for research. The images taken by satellites and astronauts provide critical information for understanding the rapidly changing climate near the poles, but they also deliver some surprisingly beautiful, strange and intriguing images. We’ve collected some of the best here.”