Antarctica is missing an area of sea ice the size of Greenland — what’s going on?

The alarming and colossal disappearance of sea ice formation in Antarctica has left experts ‘astonished’. Harry Cockburn reveals the consequences for humans and species

Adelie penguins are among the species threatened by the dramatic Antarctic change (Getty Images)

Even in an era of alarming climate records, a worrying slew of milestones has already been passed in 2023 as our planet warms.

But amid the apocalyptic scenes wrought by extreme weather across Europe, Asia and North America, perhaps the most alarming global climate event is occurring around Antarctica, where sea ice formation has hit a record low – and by a colossal margin.

It is now deep winter in the southern hemisphere; most of Antarctica is plunged into darkness for several months and the vast tracts of sea ice that fringe the continent’s coast are usually expanding out over the open ocean.