Another month has passed and so here is the updated Arctic sea ice volume graph as calculated by the Pan-Arctic Ice Ocean Modeling and Assimilation System (PIOMAS) at the Polar Science Center:

https://neven1.typepad.com/.a/6a0133f03a1e37970b0240a4629fb9200c-800wi

Arctic sea ice volume cannot be determined solely from satellite imagery, it must be modeled using a variety of measurements using several assumptions. Consequently, I don’t use the Arctic sea ice volume as much in my analyses because it is not primary raw data, and can be challenged legitimately on a variety of grounds.

Having said that, according to PIOMAS, there was less ice in the Arctic in May than any other year previously with the exception of the record low-volume year of 2017.

Regardless of whatever shortcomings the PIOMAS modelling algorithm and methodology might have, its comparisons from year-to-year are nonetheless very compelling. No matter how you slice it, the extent, area and volume of Arctic ice in midsummer are all in a state of catastrophic collapse. Within a matter of decades, summer ice in the Arctic basin will vanish, and it is not unlikely that before the end of the lifetimes of someone reading these words, winter ice will disappear as well.
At the rate things are progressing now, the Arctic ice cap will almost certainly be gone, entirely, well before the end of this century.

The climatic consequences of this disappearance are not clear, but it is safe to say they will be dramatic, if not altogether tragic.