Alaska Shattered Record In 2017 For Hottest December Ever As Arctic Sea Ice Hits Record Low

The sun rises Thursday, March 17, 2016, over the frozen tundra just outside Nome, Alaska, and lights up patches of ice covering the Nome River.
The sun rises Thursday, March 17, 2016, over the frozen tundra just outside Nome, Alaska, and lights up patches of ice covering the Nome River. AP Photo/Mark Thiessen
The sun rises Thursday, March 17, 2016, over the frozen tundra just outside Nome, Alaska, and lights up patches of ice covering the Nome River.
The sun rises Thursday, March 17, 2016, over the frozen tundra just outside Nome, Alaska, and lights up patches of ice covering the Nome River. AP Photo/Mark Thiessen

Alaska Shattered Record In 2017 For Hottest December Ever As Arctic Sea Ice Hits Record Low

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Alaska made news when it shattered the record for its hottest December on record. Alaska was almost 16°F above the average for the 20th century. Also of deep concern, the Arctic sea ice melted to a record low.

We’ll get analysis on what this means for the seemingly accelerated pace of climate change with Dr. Joseph Romm, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress. He served as an assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Energy from 1995-1998. A physicist, climate expert, and editor of the Think Progress blog ClimateProgress.org, Dr. Romm will tell us why one Alaska-based official from the National Weather Service told him, “Alaska…[is] the U.S.’s canary in that coal mine.”