Warming temperatures in the Arctic region has apparently set another new record according to scientists.

Average air temperatures over the northern polar region already reached 1.3 degree Celsius above it, after observations ending in September this year. Scientists say this is the highest since recorded temperatures began in 1900.

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This marks a new record in the yearly Arctic Report Card by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, where the Arctic regions spans from the North Pole, reaching North America and Eurasia.

According to NOAA's chief scientist, Rick Spinrad during the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco, this warming is occurring twice as fast in the Arctic compared to anywhere else on the planet due to the effects of climate change.

For sea ice, another record is also set when the Arctic Ocean freezes. In February, it reached peak coverage which was the lowest maximum extent ever since records began in 1979. This minimum ice coverage last September was apparently the fourth lowest on record.

According to atmospheric scientist, Jennifer Kay from the Cooperative Institute for Research and Environmental Science of the University of Colorado, since greenhouse gases are already increasing, Earth is also heating up where ice melts and this could only mean that new records are to be set. She adds how this record low Arctic sea ice extent this winter is apparently not surprising from a scientist's point of view.

This sea ice retreat is a considerable threat to animals such as walruses where they use ice for mating, birthing and getting out of the water. Since there are less ice, walruses now resort to land when leaving the water however, this results to overcrowding on beaches, where deadly stampedes can harm calves.

In northwestern Alaska, walruses already haul themselves out, making this a recent occurrence according to Martin Jeffries from the Federal Office of Naval Research and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Jackie Richter-Menge.

Snow covering the Arctic region spanning North American parts and Eurasian regions are also at its second lowest since 1967. This reduced snow cover can let more sunlight be absorbed through the land that in turn, absorbs heat and energy. This new study also adds how June's snow cover has been dropping every decade by 18 percent since 1979.

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