What 100-year-old ships' logbooks tell us about the future of Arctic sea ice

Aug 29, 2019

Dutch ship archeologist Jaap Morel sketches the ancient Roman Bargewhich was dug up in the town of Woerden in the centre of theNetherlands October 21, 2003. The barge, dating from around 100 AD, wasdug up in the centre of the Dutch town which was once the location ofthe Roman military settlement Castellum Laurium and a trading outposton the banks of the Rhine. Archaeologists said on Tuesday the ship,equipped with oars, was a unique find that explains how imperial Romedefended itself on its Northern frontiers. REUTERS/Michael KoorenMKN/CRB - RP4DRHYAHFAB

“The volume of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean today and the current rate of loss are unprecedented in the 110-year record,” Image: REUTERS/Michael Kooren

Hannah Hickey

‎Science writer, University of Washington

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Results from the newly created 110-year record of Arctic sea ice volume show an unexplained slight decline (black line) in the early 20th century. The current drop (red line), caused by warming temperatures due to climate change, is more than six times as steep. Image: Axel Schweiger/U. Washington

A digitized 1915 logbook from the US Coast Guard ship Bear, just after the maritime service was given that name. This entry from July 18, 1915, was when the ship was in the Beaufort Sea, on the edge of the area of the model for Arctic sea ice volume. Image: National Archives

This logbook page from the US Coast Guard ship Cutter was written July 9, 1955, in the Chukchi Sea. Image: National Archives

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