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
The remaining first-year ice continues to degrade in the Barents Sea. Slight new ice growth has occurred in the northeastern portion of the ice edge.
Bering Sea
The Bering Sea and Kamchatka Sea are ice free.
Canada East
Canada Basin is comprised of old ice with some first-year ice. Nares Strait is comprised of old ice with some first-year ice. New and young are developing around the old ice. The old ice is still moving south, it’s now at Smith Sound and between 76N and 77N. Eureka Sound and surroundings contain small amounts of first-year ice and some old ice. New ice is starting to grow in the fjords as well. Queen Elizabeth Islands is mostly old ice with some first-year ice present in very close pack conditions. New and young ice are starting to appear. Baffin Bay, Davis Strait, Lancaster Sound, Jones Sound, Gulf of Boothia, Committee Bay, the entrance to Barrow Strait, and Cumberland Sound are bergy water. Foxe Basin and Pelly Bay are ice free.
Canada North
Baffin Bay, Davis Strait, Lancaster Sound, Jones Sound, Gulf of Boothia, Committee Bay, the entrance to Barrow Strait, and Cumberland Sound are bergy water. Nares Strait is comprised of old ice with some first-year ice. New and young are developing around the old ice. The old ice is still moving south, it’s now at Smith Sound and between 76N and 77N. Eureka Sound and surroundings contain small amounts of first-year ice and some old ice. New ice is starting to grow in the fjords as well.
Canada West
The pack ice in Canada Basin consists mainly of old ice in its eastern section and mainly of first- year ice in its western section. Some new ice has begun to form along its diffuse western edge. Beaufort Sea contains old, first-year and new ice in open drift conditions. Large tracts of bergy water remain present in the Sea. The marine areas in and around the Queen Elizabeth Islands contain mostly old ice with some first-year ice. Significant new and young ice has developed in some areas, notably in Belcher Channel, Danish Strait and western Norwegian Bay. M’Clure Strait contains mostly old ice with some first-year ice present in very close pack conditions. Barrow Strait contains mostly old ice with some first-year ice in open drift conditions with some areas of bergy water present. M’Clintock Channel contains mostly first-year ice with some old ice in conditions that range from open drift to very close pack. Peel Sound, Coronation Gulf, Amundsen Gulf and Queen Maud Gulf are bergy water.
Chukchi Sea
New ice has begun to grow at the ice edge and within the openings of the old pack ice in the Chukchi Sea. The low concentrations of rotting old ice located further south and east continue to melt.
East Siberian Sea
The ice edge in the East Siberian Sea retreated slightly northward over the last 2 weeks. However, air temperatures just below freezing have allowed for some new ice to form at the ice edge in the north-central and northeastern regions. Pack ice remains loose to the northwest.
Greenland Sea
The East Greenland Current continues to drift the remaining ice edge southward into relatively warmer conditions, with air temperatures above freezing +2°C. Evidence of foundational new growth in the northern Greenland Sea with freezing air temperatures around -14°C. Fjords remain berg-infested with minimal sea ice.
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, James Bay and Southern Foxe Basin are ice-free. Hudson Strait, Ungava Bay, Labrador Sea, Frobisher Bay, Cumberland Sound and Davis Strait comprise bergy water.
Laptev Sea
The Laptev Sea is now ice-free along the Russian coastline. Only its northernmost region retains thick, first-year ice.
