BBC: Walt Meier of the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colorado, and his collaborators have just finished analyzing satellite images and other data to evaluate how Arctic ice fared in this year's melting season. The icecap reached its minimum extent of 4.76 million square kilometers on 10 September. Although the minimum was larger than in 2007 and 2008, the icecap would have shrank further if the melting season hadn't ended earlier than usual.
