On Wednesday, 12 October 2016 12:41:53 UTC+1, N_Cook wrote:
Has there ever been an observable double minima in the ice area , if
there is sustained elevasted temps and sustained storminess over the Arctic?
All I can find is decadal average plots, for earlier records.
Presumably any second minimum would not be so deep as the initial one,
but what effect would any such double minimum have on ice recovery?

Quite often.

As I've said many times and referred to NSIDC to support the view, short-term changes in ice extent are down to Arctic weather. If warmer conditions develop in an area of vulnerable ice mid-sept, the melt there will exceed the freezing overall and a 'double dip' will be observed. Really, there's only one minimum and the rest is down to the weather - with the caveat that Arctic Warning over time will drive the ice extent low down over time. That's a given, unless things change.

The minimum has little effect on the rate of ice recovery, as seen in many years. Even after a new record, freezing is swift. It's dark and cold in the Arctic and freezing will happen, whatever has happened in the melt season, some weeks previously.