--- title: Arctic Ice Reaches Fourth-Lowest Point on Record description: Ice levels in the Arctic have declined to the fourth-lowest point on record, according to new research. canonical: https://time.com/4035570/arctic-ice-melt/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-09-15T22:59:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:04:56.419Z article:section: Science og:title: Arctic Ice Reaches Fourth-Lowest Point on Record og:description: The news comes in advance of fall and winter growth in ice levels og:url: https://time.com/4035570/arctic-ice-melt/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt69f839e2ef941528/698863c78e0601833c4625c5/arctic-ice.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4752 og:image:height: 2673 og:image:alt: arctic ice og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Arctic Ice Reaches Fourth-Lowest Point on Record twitter:description: The news comes in advance of fall and winter growth in ice levels twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt69f839e2ef941528/698863c78e0601833c4625c5/arctic-ice.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Arctic Ice Reaches Fourth-Lowest Point on Record > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ## Video: Is Climate Change Causing Extreme Weather? [Watch (HLS stream): Is Climate Change Causing Extreme Weather?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/LQufbOt9.m3u8) (2:04)  _Published 2013-11-11. Is the frequency of extreme weather events a sign that global warming is gaining pace and exceeding predictions? Climate scientist Bill Patzert explains._  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Sep 15, 2015 10:59 PM UTC  sheet of ice floating on the arctic ocean sheet of ice floating on the arctic ocean Getty Images  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Sep 15, 2015 10:59 PM UTC Ice levels in the Arctic have declined to the fourth-lowest point on record, according to new [research](http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/2015/09/2015%5Farctic-minimum/). The analysis comes in advance of an expected rise in ice levels during the cool fall and winter months. The research, published by the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), suggests that the area of Arctic sea ice dropped to 4.41 million square kilometers (1.7 million square miles) late last week. That’s a decline of 620,000 square kilometers (240,000 square miles) from the lowest point in 2014\. (For perspective, that’s more land area than the entirety of California). **Read More**: [Here’s What Using the World’s Remaining Fossil Fuels Would Do to the Antarctic Ice Shelf](http://time.com/4030151/antarctica-melting-ice/) Despite ups and downs, ice levels in the Arctic have continued a general downward trajectory since satellites first measured the area of ice in 1979\. Nine of the ten years with the lowest minimum ice levels have occurred in the last decade, according to the report. Rising temperatures due to global warming have caused ice to melt in the Arctic. Last year was the hottest ever recorded and researchers anticipate 2015 will break that record. “The ice is decreasing over time, which you would expect because the Arctic is warming,” NSIDC researcher Julienne Stroeve [told the Associated Press](http://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/rapid-melt-arctic-sea-ice-shrinks-fourth-lowest-level-record-n427866). Researchers noted that the results are preliminary. Ice levels could decline slightly if weather patterns shift unexpectedly, according to the report. Ice melt, one of many consequences of global climate change, contributes to a number of problems, including global sea level rise. Sea levels are [expected to rise](http://www.nrdc.org/globalwarming/qthinice.asp) by as much as 3 feet by 2100. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] Extreme weather was more frequent in recent years. Is it a sign that global warming is gaining pace and exceeding predictions? Now, has extreme weather been more frequent in recent years? The evidence is definitely to the contrary. The United States has always had extreme weather. We look back on our weather history. It's been punishing. Floods, droughts, tornadoes, hurricanes, great forest fires. Is global warming happening? No doubt about it. We're living in a warmer world. We're living in a melting world, sea levels are rising. Now, direct evidence of the foot print or the finger print of global warming, we're seeing more frequent, more intense and longer lasting heat waves. As far as hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires, floods and drought; the evidence is definitely not in. The consensus among almost all scientists is, is that it's a small finger print, not a large foot print. But what is true is that in this country, in the United States, we live in many areas with great risk to drought, [ NOISE ] to tornadoes, to hurricanes. And so part of the dialog is not only extreme weather and global warming but is the amount of risk we can tolerate. Now, looking to the future, global change, global warming it definitely is accelerating and it will have an impact on extreme weather. But at this point, not much. 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