Arctic sea ice area at lowest level

Warmer temperatures in winter mean many places froze up later

LOS ANGELES - Mainly due to climate warming, Arctic sea ice hit a record low in January this year, the US National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) said on Tuesday.

Arctic ice in January covered 5.23 million square km, 50,000 square km less than the previous record in 2006, the NSIDC said in a report published on the website LiveScience.com.