![Which mountain snowpacks are most vulnerable to global warming?](/sites/default/files/vulnerable_mountain_snowpack_480.jpg)
Early disappearance of winter snowpack can have a major impact on spring and summer water supplies for people, ecosystems, and agriculture.
![Understanding the Arctic polar vortex](/sites/default/files/US_cold_feb2021_480.jpg)
Polar vortex expert Amy Butler and Arctic expert James Overland offer perspectives on the February cold snap in the southern U.S., the polar vortex, and how the Arctic might influence mid-latitude weather.
![Sea ice withers while phytoplankton blooms in the Arctic](/sites/default/files/ARC2020_chlorophyl_and_seaice_480x320.jpg)
Unusually big blooms of tiny ocean plants occurred in the Arctic this past summer, linked to early summer retreat of sea ice.
![2020 adds another year of extreme warmth to warming trend in Arctic Ocean](/sites/default/files/2020ARC_SST_trend_1982_2020_480.jpg)
August sea surface temperatures in the Arctic are rising by as much as 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) per decade.
![2020 Arctic air temperatures continue a long-term warming streak](/sites/default/files/2020ARC_temp_map_graph_480.png)
Despite a few cold spots, it was the the second-warmest year on record Arctic wide. Since 2000, Arctic temperatures have been more than twice as far above average as the planet as a whole.
![Greenland ice loss in 2020 was below the record but above average](/sites/default/files/Greenland_massloss_2002-2020_480.jpg)
Between September 2019 and August 2020, the rate of ice loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet was much lower that the record set the previous 12-month period, but but still above the 2002–2020 average. Overall, Greenland continues to lose ice.
![Fire fuels in high northern latitudes are becoming more flammable](/sites/default/files/Fire_fuel_ARC2020_480_0.jpg)
The taiga is becoming more flammable, increasing the risk for intense wildfires—some so intense they overwinter in deep ash pits and re-emerge the following spring.
![2020 Arctic Report Card: Climate.gov visual highlights](/sites/default/files/2020ARC_temp_map_graph_480.png)
The 15th installment of NOAA's Arctic Report Card NOAA's 15th Arctic Report Card catalogs the numerous ways that climate change continues to disrupt the polar region.
![The U.S. drought vulnerability rankings are in: How does your state compare?](/sites/default/files/2021-10/Drought-Vulnerability-Indexes_2020_rotator.jpg)
A new NOAA-funded index scores U.S. states' long-term vulnerability to drought, based on a combination of sensitivity, exposure, and their ability to adapt.