While an orbiting satellite can measure the area and depth of the Arctic ice cover, it can't "see" the snow-to-ice ratio, a critical data point. Truth be told, Notenboom, a 54-year-old Dutch-American explorer and filmmaker who lives in Canada, is drawn to the North Pole the way President Donald Trump is drawn to Mar-a-Lago. It's only since 1979 that satellites began monitoring sea ice — the bat of a frosty eyelid in terms of meteorological records. And since then, researchers have already observed a steep and steady decline in Arctic sea ice; indications are that this summer will see the least sea ice on record, after 2015 and 2016. That's why Notenboom was eager to line up sponsors and arrange to coordinate with NASA for her latest trek to the North Pole -- "just to understand the Arctic climate science better," she says.

Source: Huffington Post April 22, 2017 17:37 UTC