ARctic forecast to be above freezing on 5 February

North Pole forecast to be above freezing on Feb 5, 2018

Above freezing temperatures are forecast over the North Pole for Feb 5, 2018.

Arctic News,

1 February, 2018

Air temperature is forecast to be 0.2°C or 32.4°F at 1000 hPa over the North Pole on Feb 5, 2018, 21:00 UTC, as illustrated by above image.

As above forecast below shows, a large area around the North Pole will be up to 30°C or 54°F warmer than 1979-2000 on February 5, 2018. 

These high temperatures are caused by strong winds pushing warm air up from the North Atlantic into the Arctic. Above image shows the Jet Stream moving at speeds as high as 288 km/h or 179 mph (at green circle, forecast for February 5, 2018, 21:00 UTC).

This follows high temperatures over East Siberia. The image below shows average temperature anomalies for January 31, 2018, compared to 1979-2000.

The image below shows open water on the East Siberian coast in the Arctic Ocean.

Meanwhile, Arctic sea ice extent is at a record low, as illustrated by the image below.

Sam Carana about the Arctic and global temperature (podcast by Wolfgang Werminghausen, responses by Sam Carana read by Kevin Hester) From the interview, Sam Carana: "Methane releases from the seafloor of the Arctic Ocean have a strong warming impact, especially locally, AND methane releases in the Arctic also act as a catalyst for other feedbacks that are all self-reinforcing and interlinked, amplifying each other in many ways. It could easily become 10°C or 18°F warmer in a matter of years, especially in places where most people are now living."