Quotable: The North Pole is liquid

Mark Drinkwater of the European Space Agency commented on recent
satellite images of the north pole:

It is highly imaginable that a ship could have passed from Spitzbergenor Northern Siberia through what is normally pack ice to reach the North Pole without difficulty….

If this anomaly continues, the Northeast Passage, or ‘Northern Sea
Route’ between Europe and Asia will be open over longer intervals of
time, and it is conceivable we might see attempts at sailing around the
world directly across the summer Arctic Ocean within the next 10 to 20
years.”