Rapidly Changing Arctic Ocean: Observations from the International Polar Year

Data from the International Polar Year (2007-2009) confirm that the Arctic Ocean is undergoing rapid changes. Air and water temperatures are rising, sea ice volume and extent are declining, storminess is increasing, permafrost is thawing, continental run-off is increasing, sea level is rising, coastal erosion is intensifying and biological processes are responding in complex ways. These changes have profound environmental and socio-economic consequences, locally and worldwide.