The blink comparator above shows the changes in the ice in the Beaufort Sea between August 15 and August 18, 2010. You can see several things happening.

1. The ice is being blown to the north (right) by the wind.
2. A lot of the thinner ice (on the right side) is melting out.

The blink comparator below shows the PIPS ice movement during that same period. You can see the strong winds pushing the ice edge.

So what is melting the thin ice in the top image? Warm winds blowing off North America and Siberia.