My trip to meet the scientists trying to refreeze the Arctic
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- The Real Ice project drilled small holes in Arctic sea ice near Cambridge Bay, Canada, and pumped ocean water onto the surface, thickening the ice by about 50cm across a 450m x 450m test area that formed a "sparkling white island" melting more slowly than surrounding ice.
- Global heating has destroyed about 40% of Arctic summer sea ice over the past 45 years, with another 80,000 sq km lost annually, and the lost dark sea reflects 10 times less sunlight than intact ice, creating a self-reinforcing warming cycle.
- The £3.5m UK government-funded project plans to use underwater drones—already tested in prototype off Finland—to drill holes with a heated probe next year, with researchers estimating a rough $10bn cost to halt the annual shrinking of Arctic sea ice at scale.
- Local Inuit communities helped set up the experiment and continue working on it, with their expertise deemed crucial because they depend on the sea ice for transport and hunting.
- Some polar scientists have strongly criticized refreezing Arctic sea ice as unfeasible, environmentally dangerous, and a "dangerous distraction" from the emissions cuts that ultimately must end the climate crisis.
- The journalist visited Cambridge Bay at the start of the month when temperatures were 5-10C above normal, kickstarting the melting season almost overnight.
Why it matters: Real Ice has proven a small-scale technique works; the $10bn estimated scale-up cost is roughly equivalent to windfall profits the top 100 oil companies made in under two weeks after the Iran war spiked oil prices, or to the $60bn in damage caused by the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. With 80,000 sq km of summer sea ice vanishing every year and emissions cuts still lagging, the project represents a contentious emergency option that critics warn could divert attention from the real solution.
