The ice caps are the two large masses of ice that sit atop Earth’s poles. They are called the Arctic ice cap and the Antarctic ice cap. The Arctic ice cap is located around the North Pole, while the Antarcticice cap is located around the South Pole. Ice caps are not permanent features; they grow and shrink as Earth’s climate changes.
The Arctic ice cap has an area of about 14 million square kilometers (5.4 million square miles), which is slightly smaller than the continent of Europe. It is mostly composed of fresh water, with a small amount of brine (salty water). The average thickness of the Arctic ice cap is about 3 meters (10 feet). However, there are some areas that are much thicker, such as the Ward Hunt Ice Shelf in Canada, which can be up to 750 meters (2,460 feet) thick!
The Antarctic ice cap is much larger than the Arctic ice cap, with an area of about 20 million square kilometers (7.7 million square miles). It is also almost entirely composed of fresh water. The average thickness of Antarcticice is about 1.6 meters (5.2 feet). However, like in the Arctic, there are some areas that are much thicker than this; for example, parts of Antarctica’s Ross Ice Shelf can be more than 600 meters (1,970 feet) thick!
Both polar regions have experienced a significant decline in sea ice cover in recent years due to anthropogenic global warming and climate change. Between 1979 and 2012, it was estimated that there was a loss of roughly 3% per decade in summer sea-ice extent across both polar regions combined. This trend continued through 2018; according to NASA satellite data from March 2018 showed that sea-ice coverage reached its lowest point on record for that time period since satellite observations began in 1979 . This decline in sea-ice cover exposes more open ocean water to sunlight during summer months when solar radiation levels are at their highest , resulting in increased melting rates . As global temperatures continue to rise due to human emissionsof greenhouse gases , it is likely that this trend will continue , leading to even further declinesin sea-ice cover and potentially posing serious risks to marine ecosystems and global climate stability .