美国国家冰雪数据中心（NSIDC）报告称，南极海冰的冬季最大覆盖面积达到了自1979年卫星观测记录以来的第三低水平。该机构负责监测极地冰层的范围，指出有记录以来的四个最低冬季海冰覆盖面积均出现在过去四年内，这表明南极海冰的长期减少趋势正在加速。
Antarctic sea ice reached its third-lowest winter maximum since satellite records began in 1979, the US National Snow and Ice Data Center reported. The four lowest maxima on record have all occurred within the past four years, pointing to an accelerating long-term decline.
根据NSIDC的数据，南极周围的海冰面积已经降至有卫星观测记录以来的第三低水平，目前的海冰覆盖面积比长期平均水平少了约100万平方公里。
Sea ice surrounding Antarctica reached its third-lowest winter maximum since satellite records began in 1979, according to the US National Snow and Ice Data Center, which tracks polar ice extent. The reading leaves the ice ring roughly a million square kilometres short of its long-term average.
科学家们认为，这种连续四年出现最低冬季海冰覆盖面积的现象，更可能是南极海冰长期减少趋势的体现，而非某个异常季节的结果。此前，南极海冰的年际变化幅度通常比北极海冰要小。
The four lowest winter maxima on record have all occurred within the past four years, the center said, a pattern scientists point to as evidence of an accelerating long-term decline rather than a single unusual season. Antarctic sea ice had historically shown more year-to-year stability than Arctic ice before this recent run.
研究人员认为，南极海冰的减少将对全球海平面、海洋环流以及天气模式产生深远影响，这些影响不仅限于极地地区，还会波及南美洲南部海岸线以及德雷克海峡附近的航运路线。
Researchers tracking the trend say the shrinking ice ring has implications for global sea levels, ocean circulation and weather patterns far beyond the polar region, including South America's southern coastlines and shipping routes near the Drake Passage.