Barnes Ice Cap Shows Record Early Melt in Summer 2026
The Barnes Ice Cap on Baffin Island lost its snow cover by mid-July 2026, marking the earliest bare condition recorded.
Located in the heart of Baffin Island, the Barnes Ice Cap is a remaining fragment of the once-vast Laurentide Ice Sheet. Covering about 5,700 square kilometres with ice up to 730 metres deep, it has been steadily losing mass. The 2026 summer melt arrived unusually early, with a thin snowpack disappearing in just a few weeks.
By mid-July, the cap was essentially snow-free, the earliest such condition observed, according to glaciologist Mauri Pelto of Nichols College, who tracks the ice using satellite imagery and occasional field work. This rapid exposure highlights the ongoing thinning and retreat of Arctic glaciers.
Why it matters
It signals accelerating Arctic warming, which can affect global sea levels and climate patterns.
In this story