Unusual Arctic ice cap shape, kinda looks like a ghost went kkk on its way to attack Pacman . . . ice 'blocks' appear along the southern shore of the Hudson bay, though middle of summer? Three larger ice blocks appear to be 'floating' immobilized in the Arctic Ocean . . . undersea ice would likely melt very quickly but is about the only way to explain why the ice blocks remain stationary . . . , hmmmm?

Northern polar ice cap continues to remain odd looking . . . you might review the monthly Sea Ice Index Extent Anomaly Graph here:

Sea Ice Index

The declining trend line suggests a constant rate, yet the spiky 'real' data doesn't seem uniform. The graph reminds me of ALS patients' 'constant' regression rate: likely the 'real' data for ALS patients is much spikier then the imaging of the polar ice cap.

sharp reduction in ice cap size apparently happening
 

Well, the ice cap size appears to be taking a steep dive . . . the situation from an intelligence analysis brings Benoit Mandelbrot to mind:

Benoit Mandelbrot - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

whose research tried to accurately estimate the area of large surfaces but rough edges, such as sea shores.

I wonder if the ice images apparently not connected to the central 'cap' are considered by the estimation algorithm in use . . . ?

How exactly did lightning kill 323 reindeer in Norway?
 

How exactly did lightning kill 323 reindeer in Norway?

How exactly did lightning kill 323 reindeer in Norway? | The Verge

This may not be Santa's favorite year . . . .

You might contrast the two Ice Extent Maps, one dated Aug 14, and the other today - about two weeks apart . . . very big difference. Also there is a 'movie' for this 'year' here:

https://forum.arctic-sea-ice.net/ind....html#msg88277

Its a new month and I am hoping we will receive some explainations for the dramatic changes appearing to be taking place in the soon to be former great white north . . . Is there really ice on the southern shore of Hudson Bay? Will Noah be the one to rescue Santa?

NASA: "Earth, Your Future, Our Mission." Another video of Artic Ice over years
 

NASA reports "Earth, Your Future, Our Mission."

NASA - NASA Finds Thickest Parts of Arctic Ice Cap Melting Faster

Artic Sea Ice News & Analysis
 

Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis | Sea ice data updated daily with one-day lag

Today showing the ice cap growth in 'steep' turn-around,' earlier than normal I think, but none too soon:

Every single part of the Arctic is becoming worse for polar bears
Every single part of the Arctic is becoming worse for polar bears - The Washington Post

So, we may be wise to be ready for another snowy winter; the polar ice cap strongly contributes to the amount of cold experienced in winter . . . I could only find one president series of winters where a center year was unusually wet rather than snowy (such as last year) . . . Of course the year before last broke nearly every record.

Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis
 

Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis

Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis | Sea ice data updated daily with one-day lag

On recognition of return to growth, Arctic Ice Cap is said to be tied with second smallest on record, with melt rate features exceeding at times all priors. They hypothesize were there no arctic storms, the cap may have taken the 'lead' this year.