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
Temperatures in the southern sector are hovering near 2°C, with similar values along the western edge of Svalbard, where most of the remaining fast ice has now melted. Farther north, conditions remain at or near 0°C. The fast ice within Franz Josef Land is deteriorating, though a substantial amount still persists among the islands. Pack ice remains present across the region, but with continued warm air and sea temperatures, the pack ice edge is retreating and melting steadily as it interacts with warmer waters.
Bering Sea
The Western Bering is experiencing consistently warm temperatures, leading to ongoing ice melt. In contrast, the Gulf of Anadyr and the coastline of Saint Lawrence Island still retain significant ice cover.
Canada East
The Labrador Sea is bergy water except its northernmost section which contains first-year ice with some old ice in mostly open drift conditions. Frobisher Bay contains mainly bergy water except its coastal areas where first-year fast ice breaks up. Some old and first-year ice are present at the mouth of the Bay. Baffin Bay contains first-year ice with some old ice in very close pack conditions. East of 58°W is bergy water. Northern Baffin Bay is made up of open drifts of first-year ice with a trace of old ice, and large areas of bergy water. Northern coastal Greenland consists of fast first-year ice and mobile first-year ice. Southern coastal Greenland consists of bergy water. Davis Strait contains mostly first-year ice with some old ice. East of 58°W is bergy water. The Gulf of Boothia contains mobile first-year ice. Prince Regent Inlet contains mostly first-year ice with a trace of old ice. Foxe Basin contains first-year ice and areas of open water in the northern and southeastern section.
Canada North
The Arctic Ocean consists of old ice, with some first-year ice present along the northern Elizabeth Islands. Eureka Sound and Jones Sound contain mainly first-year ice with some with some old ice. Both areas remain fast. Nares Strait contains fastened old and first-year ice, forming the Nares ice bridge. In the center of the ice bridge a large area of old and first-year ice has become mobile. South of the ice bridge, in Smith Sound, there is a mixture of old and first-year ice in very open drift conditions, and areas of bergy water. Lancaster Sound contains mobile first-year ice with a trace of old ice and areas of bergy water. Cumberland Sound is mostly bergy water in the western section while some first-year with some old ice exists in the western section in open drift conditions. Cumberland Sound contains mostly first-year ice with some old ice with bergy water present in its northwestern section. Fast first-year ice surrounds the Sound with some of that ice having fractured away in the past week.
Canada West
Fast ice, made up of old ice and first-year ice, surrounds the Queen Elizabeth Islands and much of M’Clure Strait. Mobile ice has moved into the entrance to M’Clure strait and is primarily old ice, with some first-year and young ice mixed in. M’Clintock Channel, Peel Sound and the western section of Barrow Strait are fast first-year ice with a trace of old ice. The eastern section of Barrow Strait is bergy water, with some mobile first-year ice containing a trace of old ice along the extreme southwestern coast of Devon Island. Amundsen Gulf, Coronation Gulf and Queen Maud Gulf are fast first-year ice that has begun to show signs of rotting. Mobile first-year ice remains at the entrance to Amundsen Gulf and southwest of Banks Island. The fast ice at the entrance to Amundsen Gulf has continued to fracture and slowly drift northwestward. Canada Basin is primarily old ice with some first-year ice present. The Beaufort Sea is predominantly first-year ice along the coast. Old ice mixes into, and eventually dominates, the pack ice further north in the Beaufort Sea. The first-year fast ice along the coast has begun to fracture.
Chukchi Sea
The polynya in the Chukchi Sea is progressively expanding, reaching areas as far north as Utqiagvik and extending southward towards the Strait. Current temperatures ranging from 2°C to 4°C are contributing to more melt. Meanwhile, fast ice remains intact along the Alaskan coastline.
East Siberian Sea
There was a significant breakup of the fast ice southeast of the New Siberian Islands over the last week. Openings along the coast continue to form and grow, especially in areas where rivers discharge into the sea, promoting melt. The large polynya north of the New Siberian Islands grew as pack ice shifted northeastward.
Greenland Sea
Concentrations in the northern Greenland Sea continue to rapidly deteriorate, especially at the ice edge. Much of the pack ice that was present along the central and southern portion of Greenland's east coast has dispersed and melted.
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
James Bay contains first-year ice with areas of open water along its western shoreline and in the southern part. Hudson Bay comprises first-year ice. Areas of open water are present in Fisher Strait, and in northwestern and northeastern Hudson Bay. Western Hudson Strait is characterized by bergy water with first-year fast ice present along the southern shoreline of Baffin Island, and some first-year ice between Nottingham and Salisbury Islands. Eastern Hudson Strait contains first-year ice with some old ice. Ungava Bay comprises first-year ice with a trace of old ice and an area of bergy water in its southeastern section.
Kara Sea
The eastern Kara Sea is undergoing significant melt, with multiple polynyas and lower concentration ice areas developing under warmer air temperatures. Conditions in this sector have reached up to 10°C, accelerating ice deterioration. In contrast, the western Kara Sea remains near -4°C. A large lead has opened along the eastern coast of Novaya Zemlya, extending nearly the full length of the island.
Laptev Sea
There was a significant breakup of the fast ice in the Laptev Sea over the last week, especially between Severnaya Zemlya and the mainland Russian coast, and east of Taymyr Peninsula. Openings along the coast continue to form and grow, especially in areas where rivers discharge into the sea, promoting melt. Polynyas along the fast ice edge shifted and remained open as temperatures were above freezing.
Sea of Okhotsk
Temperatures in the Sea of Okhotsk are currently around +08°C, resulting in ongoing ice melt along the Russian coastline adjacent to the Sakhalin Gulf. Meanwhile, a small patch of ice persists in the Shelikov Gulf.
