Arctic.2018 May 2026

As 2018 draws to a close, it is impossible to ignore the headlines coming from the northernmost part of our planet. For scientists, the Arctic is the canary in the coal mine. For geopolitical strategists, it is the next frontier. For the rest of us, 2018 was the year the Arctic officially stopped behaving as it always had.

During the winter, temperatures at the North Pole spiked above freezing multiple times—an anomaly that used to be rare but is becoming terrifyingly common. In February, the Cape Morris Jesup station in northern Greenland recorded 61°F (6°C) above the seasonal average. For context, that is like having a spring thaw in the middle of the polar night. 2018 was the year scientists started to worry about a region we thought was invincible: the Last Ice Area north of Greenland. This thick, ancient ice (over 5 years old) was supposed to be the refuge for polar species when the rest of the summer ice melted. arctic.2018

Here is a look back at the defining moments of the Arctic in 2018. If you remember one statistic from 2018, make it this: The Arctic experienced its second-warmest year on record (second only to 2016). As 2018 draws to a close, it is

Were you paying attention in 2018? Or were we all looking the other way? For the rest of us, 2018 was the

As 2018 draws to a close, it is impossible to ignore the headlines coming from the northernmost part of our planet. For scientists, the Arctic is the canary in the coal mine. For geopolitical strategists, it is the next frontier. For the rest of us, 2018 was the year the Arctic officially stopped behaving as it always had.

During the winter, temperatures at the North Pole spiked above freezing multiple times—an anomaly that used to be rare but is becoming terrifyingly common. In February, the Cape Morris Jesup station in northern Greenland recorded 61°F (6°C) above the seasonal average. For context, that is like having a spring thaw in the middle of the polar night. 2018 was the year scientists started to worry about a region we thought was invincible: the Last Ice Area north of Greenland. This thick, ancient ice (over 5 years old) was supposed to be the refuge for polar species when the rest of the summer ice melted.

Here is a look back at the defining moments of the Arctic in 2018. If you remember one statistic from 2018, make it this: The Arctic experienced its second-warmest year on record (second only to 2016).

Were you paying attention in 2018? Or were we all looking the other way?