Minnesota Arctic explorer Will Steger has trekked across thousands of miles of ice in both the north and South Poles, crossing the Larsen Ice Shelves a few years before they disintegrated and collapsed into the sea.

MPR News chief meteorologist Paul Huttner spoke with Steger about dramatic changes he’s seen in Arctic regions over the past several decades.

The last time Lake Superior completely froze over was 30 years ago in 1996. Around that time, Lake Superior was consistently at least 75 percent frozen over. Now, 75 percent coverage is rare, only happening about once every four years.

Ice on the Great Lakes, and Lake Superior specifically, is a great way to measure climate for our region. MPR News chief meteorologist Paul Huttner spoke with UMD professor Jay Austin, about what ice coverage can tell us about climate change.

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In 2022, The State of Minnesota created their Climate Action Framework, a plan that sets a vision for how Minnesota will address and prepare for climate change. As of February 11th, the framework has been updated.

MPR News chief meteorologist Paul Huttner spoke with Heidi Roop, the Director of the University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership, which helped create the new framework, to talk about the new changes.