Editing Openai/68348ea9-9694-800a-938c-6f13046086d9 (section)

===== 📊 Observational Data =====

Observational data from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) corroborate these projections. As of March 22, 2025, the Arctic sea ice reached its lowest winter maximum extent on record at 14.33 million km².  This record low suggests a thinner and more vulnerable ice pack heading into the melt season.National Snow and Ice Data Center<ref>{{cite web|title=National Snow and Ice Data Center|url=https://nsidc.org/sea-ice-today|publisher=National Snow and Ice Data Center|access-date=2026-01-08}}</ref>Mongabay<ref>{{cite web|title=Mongabay|url=https://news.mongabay.com/2025/03/polar-sea-ice-continues-steep-decline-but-will-a-troubled-world-notice/|publisher=news.mongabay.com|access-date=2026-01-08}}</ref>

Furthermore, the average February 2025 Arctic sea ice extent was 13.75 million km², the lowest for that month in the 47-year satellite record.  These unprecedented lows in both winter maximum and February averages indicate a trend toward diminished sea ice resilience.National Snow and Ice Data Center<ref>{{cite web|title=National Snow and Ice Data Center|url=https://nsidc.org/sea-ice-today/analyses/february-made-me-shiver-not-arctic|publisher=National Snow and Ice Data Center|access-date=2026-01-08}}</ref>