Arctic Regional Synopsis
Regional charts and associated synopsis write-up capture ice and environmental conditions throughout the Arctic which are based on the U.S. National Ice Center’s weekly analysis. Charts and synopses are updated weekly on Fridays. Note: Baltic Sea analysis is provided by the Finnish Meteorological Institute. The Canadian Archipelago (Canada East, Canada North, Canada West, and Hudson Bay) analysis is provided by the Canadian Ice Service.
Regional Quick Access
Barents Sea
Melting continues throughout the Barents Sea. Sea ice surrounding Franz Josef Land continues to degrade. The ice edge in the eastern Barents Sea continues to recede poleward. All fast ice within Svalbard has broken up, and minimal strips of ice remain.
Canada East
The Greenland coast continues to have areas of both fast and mobile first-year ice north of 74N. The fast ice in the archipelago is beginning to deteriorate, with a large pocket of mobile ice through Penny Strait and Belcher Channel. This ice is predominantly first-year ice with a trace of old ice, although there are higher concentrations of old ice to the northwest. Barrow Strait is now mobile first-year ice. Fury and Hecla Strait is made up of mobile first-year ice. Foxe Basin remains predominantly first-year ice, with pockets of open water along parts of the coasts and in the southern section. Davis Strait contains first-year ice with a trace of old ice. Frobisher bay contains bergy water. Northern Baffin Bay and eastern Davis Strait are predominantly bergy water. The first-year ice with a trace of old ice near Pond Inlet has become mobile and is beginning to spill out into Baffin Bay.
Canada North
The Arctic Ocean northwest of Ellesmere Island contains predominantly old ice with small amounts of first-year ice. While most of the Nares Strait ice bridge has become mobile, a narrow bridge continues to span the Strait. The ice in this area is predominantly old ice, with some first-year ice mixed in. Barrow Strait is now mobile first-year ice. It is just beginning to drift into northwestern Prince Regent Inlet and southwestern Lancaster Sound, however most of Lancaster Sound remains bergy water. Southwestern Prince Regent Inlet and the Gulf of Boothia contain a significant amount of first year ice. Northern Baffin Bay and eastern Davis Strait are predominantly bergy water. The first-year ice with a trace of old ice near Pond Inlet has become mobile and is beginning to spill out into Baffin Bay. The pack ice continues to diminish in southern Baffin Bay and western Davis Strait. This ice is first-year ice with a trace of old ice. Much of Cumberland Sound is bergy water. The first-year ice with a trace of old ice in southeastern Cumberland Sound continues to diminish.
Canada West
The Archipelago contains old and first-year fast ice in roughly equal proportion. The ice in southern Norwegian Bay, Belcher Channel as well as the Penny Strait is mobile and is a mix of old and first-year ice. Eastern Barrow Strait is open drift first-year ice with some old ice while the rest of the Parry Channel is fractured with mostly first-year ice with some old ice. M’Clintock Channel has become mobile. The ice in Franklin Strait and Larsen Sound is mobile while Peel Sound’s ice remains fast. The ice in both these areas is first-year. Eastern Queen Maud Gulf contains first-year ice in open drift to close pack conditions while the western section is open water. Most of Rasmussen and St Roch Basins are open water except along parts of the eastern coast where very close pack first-year ice remains. Coronation Gulf consists mainly of open water with some first-year ice present in very open drift conditions in the northwestern section, just south of Dolphin and Union Strait. The southwestern part of Amundsen Gulf contains first-year ice in varying concentrations while the rest of the gulf has mostly open water. The ice along the Alaska, Yukon and Northwest Territories coastline is mostly first-year in very open drift conditions. Some old ice is present just north of Tuktoyaktuk. Open water in the Mackenzie Delta, along the Tuktoyaktuk Peninsula as well as Liverpool Bay. The ice in the Beaufort Sea and southern Arctic Ocean is mostly old with some first-year ice present.
Chukchi Sea
In the Chukchi Sea, ice drifted generally east/northeastward over the last week, as much as 25 NM. The last remaining fast ice around Wrangel Island is now mobile and weaknesses in the ice around the island continued to expand and melt out.
East Siberian Sea
In the East Siberian Sea, considerable break up of remaining fast ice was observed, especially around the New Siberian Islands. Throughout, melting continues as lower concentrations in many parts of the sea and the ice free area to the north and west of the New Siberian Islands expanded as much as 60 NM.
Greenland Sea
Fast ice in the Northern Greenland Sea continues to degrade quickly. Pack ice is all but gone from Scoresby Sound, where the warmer sea surface temperatures along with warmer water temperatures continue to push further north. Most of the ice in southern and western Greenland has nearly melted out besides a majority of the Glacial Ice in the fjords.
High Arctic
No synopsis write-up for the High Arctic as it remains consistent throughout this part of the year. A synopsis write-up will begin during summer months as ice retreats and becomes more dynamic in the region.
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay contains first-year ice with several large areas of open water present, and ice free in the north-western quarter. James Bay contains first-year ice in diminishing concentrations with large areas of open water, notably along the entire coast and in southern James Bay. Southern Foxe Basin contains mainly open water north of Southampton Island with some first year ice further north. Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay contain bergy water. The Labrador Coast is bergy water. Lake Melville is ice-free.
Kara Sea
Significant melt continues in the Kara Sea. The fast ice around Novaya Zemlya has mostly melted out. Polynyas near Novaya Zemlya have expanded. Ice free areas continue to expand, with the ice edge retreating northward by approximately 60 NM on average.
Laptev Sea
In the Laptev Sea, fast ice continues to fracture and become mobile, especially along the mainland Russian Coast. Ice melt continues as the ice free areas to the west of the New Siberian Islands and north of Taymyr Peninsula have expanded by up to 50 NM over the last week.
