North Pole Flirts With the Freezing Point, Nearly 50 Degrees Above Average

Jonathan Belles
Published: December 22,2016
Temperatures near the North Pole climbed toward the freezing mark Thursday, just days before Christmas and one day after the winter solstice.
A buoy about 88 miles south of the North Pole northeast of Greenland rose to -0.40 degrees Celsius - just over 31 degrees Fahrenheit - early Thursday, according to the North Pole Environmental Observatory.
(MORE: No More Drilling in the Arctic)

Temperatures on December 22, 2016 will approach the freezing mark at the North Pole. Temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit with the 32 degree line marked in white.

According to estimates from the Global Forecast System model, these temperatures were up to 28 degrees Celsius - about 50 degrees Fahrenheit - above average for this time of year.

Forecast surface temperature departures from average over the northern hemisphere at 7 a.m. EST on Dec. 22, 2016. The white circle denotes the North Pole.

As the GFS model shows below, this warm




































invasion won't not last long. By the time the reindeer lift off for their global gift-giving extravaganza temperatures will be well below freezing, closer to what is typical for late December.

Temperatures over the next week for the North Pole in degrees Celsius.

Warm Setup

A pair of abnormally strong low pressure systems set up north and northeast of Greenland funneled warm, moist air from the North Atlantic toward the pole.
A third much weaker area of low pressure north of Scandinavia (not pictured) also pitched in.
(MORE: 2016 Will Be Earth's Third Straight Record Warm Year)

Warm temperatures will be guided northward by a pair of low pressure systems.

Playing a supporting role is record low Arctic sea ice coverage, for this time of year, particularly in the Barents Sea.

Sea ice extent near the North Pole (in white) on December 20, 2016. The orange line traces the 30-year average sea-ice extent. Note the anomalous ice-free area highlighted in the Barents Sea near the center of the image.

Ice-free areas are able to absorb more incoming solar energy, than ice-covered areas, allowing the ocean surface, and air above it, to be warmer.
This warm up for the central Arctic region isn't the first time even this year: It happened just last month. In that round of warmth, temperatures north of 85 degrees North warmed to up to 34 degrees.
Last year, also in December, the North Pole may have briefly reached freezing with buoys near the pole surpassed the freezing point.
(December U.S. Snow Cover: Highest Since Winter Storm Jonas)
A recently published paper in the journal Nature found that these polar warming events had occurred once or twice a decade since first identified in 1959.
The study also found the warmest winter North Pole temperatures are increasing twice as fast as the average winter temperatures at the pole.

MORE: Photos from Oymyakon, Siberia, the Coldest Town On Earth