BRUSSELS, April 8. /TASS/. The area of sea ice in the Arctic in March was at a record low for at least the last 47 years, the European Copernicus Climate Change Service said.
"Arctic sea ice reached its lowest monthly extent for March in the 47-year satellite record, at 6% below average. This marks the fourth consecutive month in which the sea ice extent has set a record low for the time of year," it said in a statement.
As a rule, the area of sea ice in the Arctic reaches its maximum in March.
The service also said that the average air temperature at the earth's surface in March this year was 14.06 degrees Celsius, which is 0.65 degrees higher than the average for the period from 1991 to 2020 and 1.6 degrees higher than in the pre-industrial period. Thus, March 2025 became the second warmest March in the history of meteorological observations.
Last month was a historically warm month for Europe. The average temperature stood at 6.03 degrees Celsius, which is 2.41 degrees higher than the average of 1991-2020.
"Temperatures were mostly above the European average, abnormally warm weather was recorded in Eastern Europe and southwestern Russia, although temperatures were below average on the Iberian Peninsula," the meteorologists said.