Chukchi Sea ice runs above median for third straight late June

Chukchi Ice Runs Above Median for Third Straight Late June

Chukchi Sea ice extent was well above the 1991-2020 median as of Saturday, the third consecutive late June the pattern has held, according to NSIDC Sea Ice Index Version 4 data compiled by the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy.

Rick Thoman, climate specialist at ACCAP and the International Arctic Research Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, said high-concentration ice remains off the Alaska coast north of Wainwright and that the Beaufort Sea has "hardly any open water yet." For Wainwright, an Iñupiat community on the Chukchi coast, dense offshore ice in late June shapes boat access to walrus, seals, and whales.

The regional pattern coexists with below-average Arctic-wide extent and, separately, much cooler-than-average eastern Bering Sea surface temperatures in May 2026, according to climate scientist Zachary Labe.

What drives three consecutive above-median late Junes in the Chukchi remains an open question.