According to a recent scientific study, global warming in the northern Barents Sea is 5-7 times faster than the global average. Even compared to the average development in the whole Arctic, which is a hotspot within global warming, the climatic development of the northern Barents Sea area is 2-2.5 times faster.
Heavy rain and thawing temperatures over days in Longyearbyen, mid March 2022, in the middle of what should be the coldest part of the winter. Generally speaking, weather and climate should not be confused, but an increasing frequency and intensity of such events signifies a climatic trend.
Loss of sea is is identified by Isaksen and co-authors as the main driving mechanism behind this dramatic regional trend. If present, sea ice effectively minimizes heat transfer between sea and atmosphere. Lacking sea ice in an area previously covered by ice most of the year or even year round, however, enable warm (relatively warm, that is) sea water to release heat to the atmosphere.
Especially in northeastern Svalbard, sea ice was present almost year round most of the time until the recent past. The loss of sea ice in this particular area explains the especially pronounced warming in that part of the Arctic.