Impact of increased evaporation from an increasingly ice-free Arctic on land precipitation

The loss of Arctic sea ice is conducive to more Arctic evaporation, which can alter precipitation through moisture cycling and transport. However, the extent of this influence remains uncertain. Our work focuses on Arctic seas where seasonal sea ice has retreated significantly. The Arctic evaporation was tracked to establish a link between changes in both sea ice and precipitation over land during the cold season (October to March). Our results show a significant one-third increase in Arctic moisture contribution to land precipitation. Despite Arctic moisture comprising a relatively small proportion of land precipitation, its heightened contribution significantly influenced the precipitation, especially over lands adjacent to the Arctic. Our findings highlight that the progressively ice-free Arctic tends to contribute to a gradual yet discernible shift in the climatological land precipitation, which may lead to an elevated risk of extreme disasters.