NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information
Northern Hemisphere Snow Cover Extent
| March 2023 | Snow Cover Extent | Anomaly 1991-2020 | Trend per decade | Rank (57 years) | Record | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| million km² | million mi² | million km² | million mi² | million km² | million mi² | Year(s) | million km² | million mi² | |||
| Northern Hemisphere | 39.26 | 15.16 | -0.53 | -0.20 | -0.43 | -0.17 | Largest | 43rd | 1985 | 44.28 | 17.10 |
| Smallest | 15th | 1990 | 37.12 | 14.33 | |||||||
| North America | 16.99 | 6.56 | +1.29 | +0.50 | -0.02 | -0.01 | Largest | 4th | 1969 | 17.29 | 6.68 |
| Smallest | 55th | 1968 | 14.04 | 5.42 | |||||||
| Ties: 1971 | |||||||||||
| Eurasia | 22.27 | 8.60 | -1.82 | -0.70 | -0.41 | -0.16 | Largest | 52nd | 1981 | 27.95 | 10.79 |
| Smallest | 6th | 2002 | 21.18 | 8.18 | |||||||
Data Source: Global Snow Laboratory, Rutgers University. Period of record: 1967–2023 (57 years)
The Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent for March 2023 was 39.26 million square kilometers (15.16 million square miles), which was 530,000 square kilometers (200,000 square miles) below the 1991–2020 average.
This ranked as the 15th-smallest Northern Hemisphere March snow extent on record.
The North America and Greenland snow cover extent for March was 16.99 million square kilometers (6.56 million square miles), which was 1.29 million square kilometers (500,000 square miles) above the 1991–2020 average. This tied 1971 as the fourth-largest snow cover extent for North America on record.
Above-average March snow cover extent was observed across much of western North America, the Rocky Mountains, and the northeastern U.S. Parts of the central plains of the U.S. had below-average extent.
Snow cover extent over Eurasia in March was 22.27 million square kilometers (8.60 million square miles), which was 1.82 million square kilometers (700,000 square miles) below the 1991–2020 average. This was the sixth-smallest March Eurasian snow cover extent on record.
Most of Europe, southeastern Russia, the Caucasus region, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan had below-average snow cover extent this month. Parts of Scandinavia had above-average extent for March.
Sea Ice Extent
The sea ice extent data for the Arctic and Antarctic are provided by the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and are measured from passive microwave instruments onboard NOAA Satellites. The sea ice extent period of record is from 1979–2023 for a total of 45 years.
| March 2023 | Sea Ice Extent | Anomaly 1991-2020 | Trend per decade | Rank (45 years) | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| million km² | million mi² | Year(s) | million km² | million mi² | |||||
| Northern Hemisphere | 14.44 | 5.58 | -3.93% | -2.53% | Largest | 40th | 1979 | 16.34 | 6.31 |
| Smallest | 6th | 2017 | 14.29 | 5.52 | |||||
| Southern Hemisphere | 2.80 | 1.08 | -31.37% | 0.00% | Largest | 44th | 2008 | 5.28 | 2.04 |
| Smallest | 2nd | 2017 | 2.70 | 1.04 | |||||
| Globe | 17.24 | 6.66 | -9.79% | -1.99% | Largest | 44th | 2008 | 20.46 | 7.90 |
| Smallest | 2nd | 2017 | 16.99 | 6.56 | |||||
Data Source: National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). Period of record: 1979–2023 (45 years)
Globally, March saw the second-smallest sea ice extent on record.
The Arctic sea ice extent for March 2023 ranked sixth smallest in the satellite record at 14.44 million square kilometers (5.58 million square miles). This was 590,000 square kilometers (230,000 square miles) below the 1991–2020 average. According to NSIDC, Arctic sea ice likely reached its maximum extent for the year on March 6 at 14.62 million square kilometers (5.64 million square miles), which ranks as the fifth-lowest Arctic maximum in the 45-year satellite record.
Sea ice extent was below average in Baffin Bay, the Barents and Bering seas, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, and the Sea of Okhotsk. The Sea of Japan had near-average extent, while the Central Arctic Ocean and Greenland Sea had above-average sea ice extent this March.
The March 2023 Antarctic sea ice extent was 2.80 million square kilometers (1.08 million square miles), or 1.28 million square kilometers (490,000 square miles) below the 1991–2020 average. This ranks as the second-smallest March extent on record.