How come all the ice doesn't melt at the north pole during the six months it spends in 24 hour daylight?

Question

It's directly pointing at the sun, especially in June. Why is it not extremely hot and all the ice melt for 6 months?

Answer 1

Too much ice. Makes it like a self sustaining refrigerator

Not enough direct sunlight. There is no direct sunlight North and South of Arctic and Antarctic circles.

Answer 2

it is perma frost rock ice

Answer 3

its called PERMAFROST its ice that has been frozen so long and is so cold that it can't melt. also the north pole is still far from the sun in the summer so it has less chance of melting. also it makes the surface temperature colder so it has even less chance of melting.

Answer 4

Ice melts and large amounts melt, but the ice mass is very thick and 6 months is not enough to melt all of it.

In addition, sunlight hits the Earth surface at the poles at very small angles, so most of it is reflected off (kind of like mirage on asphalt when you see it in the distance) so little is transmitted into the ice in the form of heat. Sunlight hits the Earth surface at large angle, almost from right above, and most of it is absorbed and heats up the ground - that is why the tropics and the equator are so warm.

Answer 5

The glaciers do melt, but slowly so the glaciers don;t lost much ice in 6 months of heat. The UV rate might not be high enough. There could be sun, but it could still be cold because of low UV

Answer 6

The north and south poles NEVER point directly towards the Sun. The maximum tilt of the North Pole toward the Sun is 23 degrees on the first day of summer, less on any other day.

The rays always hit at least at a severe slant and so the poles receive far less sunlight than the tropical regions, or actually, any other regions of the Earth.

Answer 7

in summer from October to March temperatures rarely rise above freezing point and winter temperatures are the lowest in the world,

minus 117F. lacking a heavy protective blanket of water vapour, it readily loses heat by radiation. therefore the little precipitation it has will freeze and remain. the volume of the southern ice-cap has been estimated to be 90 per cent of the world's ice.

Answer 8

areee...you...serious?