Basin-wide thinning of Arctic sea ice following the 2007 record ice extent minimum

September 2007 marked a record minimum in Arctic sea ice extent, 24% lower than the previous record low in September 2005, and 37% below the climatological mean. Model studies have suggested that ice thickness and ice extent are intrinsically linked, and while there have been many studies published recently describing the minimum and its causes, little is known about how the ice thickness has changed in the run up to, and following, the summer of 2007. Using satellite radar altimetry data, covering the Arctic Ocean up to 81.5°North, we investigate changes in sea ice thickness in the run up to, and following, the 2007 minimum. These results show no evidence of preconditioning through ice thinning between 2002 and 2007 but show that, after the record minimum ice extent in 2007, the average ice thickness was reduced, particularly in the Western Arctic.