Antarctic sea ice reaches 2026 annual maximum

Antarctic sea ice likely reached its annual maximum extent for 2026 on September 14, according to data from NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). On that date, the ice covered approximately 17.59 million square kilometers (6.79 million square miles), marking the third-lowest maximum on record.

Geographically, the Antarctic continent is surrounded by an ocean, allowing sea ice more room to expand during the winter compared to the Arctic. While Antarctic sea ice saw a gradual increase of about 1 percent per decade between 1979 and 2014, significant decreases began occurring in 2016. Although there have been minor rebounds in subsequent years, overall coverage has remained low.