The Globe and Mail

Arctic Ocean sea ice has melted to the second lowest minimum since satellite observations began, according to scientists at the U.S. National Snow and Ice Data Center.

Sea ice melt recorded on Monday exceeded the low recorded in 2005, which had held second place.

With several weeks left in the melting season, ice in summer 2008 has a chance to go below last year’s record low, the scientists at the University of Colorado said.

The Globe and Mail

The cold climes of the Arctic are fast becoming an international hot spot. Faced with melting ice floes opening up navigable waterways, tantalized by the dream of untold resource riches in the northern seabed and spurred on by a gaggle of commentators calling on countries to assert their sovereign rights in the name of their “national interests,” governments of the circumpolar region are engaging in a competitive scurry to plant flags, bolster their military presence and engage in disputatious legal wrangles.