Sept. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The Arctic's Northwest Passage has opened fully because of melting sea ice, clearing a route between Europe and Asia, according to the European Space Agency, or ESA.

Sea ice in the passage covers the smallest area since it was first measured about 30 years ago, the news agency reported on its Web site. The ice-covered area has dropped to about 3 million square kilometers (1.16 million square miles), a million less than a previous low in 2006, the ESA said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Fred Pals in Amsterdam at fpals@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 15, 2007 09:12 EDT