The crucial role that Antarctic sea ice plays in the global climate system is strongly linked to
its thickness. While in situ observations are too sparse in the Antarctic to determine long-
term trends of the Antarctic sea ice thickness on a global scale, satellite radar altimetry data
can be applied with a promising prospect. A newly released Envisat-derived product from
the European Space Agency Sea Ice Climate Change Initiative (ESA SICCI), including sea
ice freeboard and sea ice thickness, covers the entire Antarctic year-round from 2002 to …

The crucial role that Antarctic sea ice plays in the global climate system is strongly linked to
its thickness. While field observations are too sparse in the Antarctic to determine long-term
trends of the Antarctic sea ice thickness (SIT) on a hemispheric scale, satellite radar altimetry
data can be applied with a promising prospect. European Space Agency Climate Change
Initiative–Sea Ice Project (ESA SICCI) includes sea ice freeboard and sea ice thickness
derived from Envisat, covering the entire Antarctic year-round from 2002 to 2012. In this …