Meanwhile, back in the Arctic...
Arctic Sea Ice Re-Freezing at Record Pace
The rest of the article, not surprisingly, is various people tap-dancing so fast their shoes smoke, explaining why this doesn't really mean anything. The article pretty much leaves off with November.
Be interesting to see the numbers around January, but some more recent views of the middle of December can be found here.
Try the "comparison" gadget. I think you have to enter December 17th in the right-hand side to get the most recent picture.
I include one comparison below (note: only more recent displays include snow cover). Note Hudson Bay, land of polar bears.
