Arctic ice coverage has receded this week to record lows, the European Space Agency said, raising the prospect of greater maritime traffic through a long-sought waterway known as the Northwest Passage.
Until now, the passage has been expected to remain closed even during reduced ice cover by multiyear ice pack ? sea ice that remains through one or more summers, ESA said.
Satellite images this week showed Arctic ice cover fell to the lowest level since scientists started collecting such information in 1978, according to a statement on Paris-based ESA’s Web site Saturday.
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