NEW FOR 2017: Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service.
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice is shorefast along the north, east, and southeast coasts of St. Lawrence Island out 2 to 7 miles from the coast. A polynya continues to expand on the south side of the island now up to 115 miles offshore. While there is close pack ice of new and young ice forming on the eastern side of the polynya, the western side of the polynya west of Silook Camp is very open...
View Full ReportState of the Ice at Season’s Start
Contributed by Matthew Druckenmiller (National Snow and Ice Data Center and SEARCH Sea Ice Action Team) & Hajo Eicken (University of Alaska Fairbanks)
Arctic-wide, this year’s winter maximum sea ice extent observed on March 7 was the lowest in the satellite record (the National Snow and Ice Data Center reported this on March 22, and will offer a more detailed report in April 2017). In fact, the last lowest three winter maximum extents have all occurred in the...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The only sea ice remaining near St. Lawrence Island lies near Tomname Lagoon along the northeast coast of the island. The remainder of the island is surrounded by sea ice free waters at this time.
Wales to Shishmaref
Sea ice in the vicinity of Wales to Shishmaref continued to retreat very rapidly this past week. At this time, lagoon areas from Wales up to Espenberg have melted out to leave only open water conditions. Beyond the lagoon areas from Mugisitokiwik to Espenberg lies a very narrow belt of close pack ice that has consolidated near the coast...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Very minimal sea ice remains around St. Lawrence Island at this time. Open water to very open pack ice lies along the northern and eastern coastline of the island and all remaining sea ice is rapidly deteriorating. A belt of rapidly deteriorating sea ice currently stretches from the northeast corner of the island to the north to the eastern half of the Bering Strait.
Wales to Shishmaref
Sea Ice in the vicinity of Wales to Shishmaref retreated very rapidly this past week. At this time lagoon areas from Ikpek up to Espenberg have melted out to leave...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Ice-free waters currently stretch from near Gambell around the western and southern coastlines of St. Lawrence Island to near Kialegak Point. Very minimal coastal sea ice remains in isolated areas along the northern coast of the island. Very open to open pack ice lies just offshore from the northern coastline, and the remaining first year sea ice floes are rapidly melting. A belt of ice currently stretches from east of Little Diomede Island to offshore from the east coast of St. Lawrence Island and is drifting due to wind and current forcing. This belt of ice is...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice along the northern coastline of St. Lawrence Island continued to break apart and destabilize during the past week. Shorefast ice remains along the northern coastline extending offshore up to 5 nautical miles. West of Savoonga, beyond the shorefast ice of the northern coast lies a polynya with open water to very open pack ice consisting of first year ice floes. Beyond the shorefast ice of the northern coast, east of Savoonga, there is close pack ice. Open water currently lies off the coast near Gambell with open pack ice drifting with the winds and ocean...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice along the northern coastline of St. Lawrence Island has changed rapidly in the past week. Shorefast ice remains along the northern coastline extending offshore up to 5 nm. Beyond the shorefast ice of the northern coast lies a polynya with very open pack ice consisting of first year ice floes. Beyond the polynya lies a region of open to close pack ice. Open water currently lies off the coast near Gambell with open pack ice drifting with the winds and ocean currents further offshore. Belts of ice are being pulled down past the east coast of the island with...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Shorefast ice remains secure along the northern coastline of St. Lawrence Island with consolidated first year sea ice stretching approximately 20 to 35 nm to the north of the coastline from Gambell to Savoonga. Beyond this ice area lies mainly new and young sea ice with isolated first year ice floes continuing to drift to the south through the Bering Strait. Along the west coast of the island, first year sea ice floes are drifting to the southwest past the coastline. Off the east coast of the island lies a larger belt of first year pack ice also drifting to the...
State of the Ice at Season’s Start
Contributed by Matthew Druckenmiller, National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and SEARCH Sea Ice Action Team
Conditions in the Bering Sea region this year are generally consistent with much of the Arctic. The National Snow and Ice Data Center reported the 2016 maximum winter extent of Arctic sea ice to be the lowest in the satellite record (1979-present), noting that unusually warm...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The only sea ice left around St. Lawrence Island remains in the lagoons. This sea ice is rotting in place. The island is surrounded by sea ice-free conditions at this time.
Wales to Shishmaref
The only sea ice remaining is near Mugisitokiwik, as well as in the southern end of Lopp Lagoon. The ice along the coast near Mugisitokiwik extends out 1 nautical mile or less from the coast.
5 to 10 Day Forecast
Weather System/Wind Synopsis
Low pressure will be over the mainland of Alaska on Friday, 5 June, producing northerly winds of 20 to 25 kt...
View Full ReportNear St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice conditions near St. Lawrence Island have continued to decline this week. Sea ice within the lagoons around the island is no longer shorefast. Niyakpak Lagoon has surface and near shore melting with open water conditions. From Camp Iveetok over to Tomname Lagoon and Camp Kalowiye the ice near shore is melting from the coastline out with surface meltwater ponds forming. There is also very open pack ice drifting between Camp Iveetok and Tomname Lagoon, with sea ice-free water beyond the isolated area. To the south of the island within the lagoons, the...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice conditions near St. Lawrence Island have continued to decline this week. Sea ice within the lagoons around the island is no longer shorefast. Niyakpak Lagoon has surface and near shore melting with open water conditions and an isolated first year strip of ice off the coastline from the lagoon. From Camp Iveetok over to Tomname Lagoon and Camp Kalowiye the ice near shore is melting from the coastline out with surface meltwater ponds forming. Very open pack is drifting past the coast near Camp Kalowiye, with open water beyond the isolated area. To the...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice conditions near St. Lawrence Island have continued to decline this week. The shorefast ice along the northern coastline of the island is currently limited to Niyakpak Lagoon, a narrow shorefast strip near Savoonga up to 1 mile offshore, and a belt of shorefast ice from near Ataakas Camp on over to Camp Kulowiye extending up to 4 miles offshore. The shorefast ice along the southern coastline of the island is limited to the lagoons.
Open water to very open pack ice conditions lie beyond the shorefast ice to the north and northeast of the island. The...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice conditions near St. Lawrence Island have steadily declined this week. The shorefast ice along the northern coastline of the island continues to be limited in extent, currently extending up to 4.5 miles, while the shorefast ice along the southern coastline remains limited to the lagoons. Beyond the shorefast ice to the north and northeast of the island lies a region of very close to close pack ice consisting of first year ice floes. To the east of the island, close pack ice is shifting in and out near the shoreline. The coastline from Gambell around to...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice conditions near St. Lawrence Island have changed quite a bit from last week. The shorefast ice along the northern coastline of the island continues to be limited in extent, currently extending up to 4.5 miles, while the shorefast ice along the southern coastline remains limited to the lagoons. Beyond the shorefast ice to the north of the island, there is a region of very close to close pack ice consisting of first year ice floes. To the east of the island close-pack ice is shifting in and out near the shoreline. The coastline from Gambell around to the...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The shorefast ice along the northern coastline of the island continues to be limited in extent, currently extending up to 8 miles offshore, while the shorefast ice along the southern coastline is limited to the lagoons. To the north and east of the island lies a region of very close pack ice consisting of mainly first year ice floes. To the west and south of the island lies an area covered mainly with young and new ice with isolated first year ice floes in the vicinity.
Wales to Shishmaref
Shorefast ice along the northwest Seward Peninsula beyond the...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The shorefast ice along the northern coastline of the island continues to be limited in extent, currently extending up to 8 miles offshore, while the shorefast ice along the southern coastline is limited to the lagoons. To the west, north, and east of the island lies a region of very close pack ice consisting of mainly first year ice floes. A small polynya is currently located along the west coastline of the island just south of Gambell extending up to 3 nautical miles offshore. To the south of the island beyond the lagoons lies a very large polynya extending up...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The shorefast ice along the northern coastline of the island continues to be limited in extent currently extending up to 8 miles offshore, while the shorefast ice along the southern coastline is limited to the lagoons. Beyond the shorefast ice edge to the north and east of the island lies a region of very close pack ice consisting mainly of first year ice floes. To the south of the island beyond the lagoons and along the west facing coastline lies a very large polynya that has some new and young sea ice forming within it.
Wales to Shishmaref
The...
View Full ReportState of the Ice at Season’s Start
Analysts at the Alaska Ice Program cannot recall a time in recent memory when the ice around the Bering Strait was so broken up this early in the year. Compared to the extreme ice year of 2013, there is less ice over the Gulf of Anadyr; there is even less ice in that region than in 2014. Figures 1-3, below, show that there is less ice in the area than at this time of year in 2013 and 2014. Given the current state of the ice and the forecast by the Climate Prediction Center for a good chance of warmer than normal conditions, ice may be out of the area...
Near St. Lawrence Island
St. Lawrence Island is sea ice-free beyond the western, southern, and eastern coastlines. Strips of brash sea ice are continuing to stream off the main pack ice remaining near the Gulf of Anadyr and are passing to the north and northwest of the island at this time. The remainder of the Northern Bering Sea is mainly open water to sea ice-free.
Wales to Shishmaref
Lagoons from Wales to Espenberg are mostly sea ice-free at this time. Sea ice-free conditions lie from the Bering Strait through much of the southeastern Chukchi Sea offshore from Wales to...
Near St. Lawrence Island
St. Lawrence Island is sea ice free beyond the western, southern, and eastern coastlines. Very open-to-open pack ice lies near the northern coast from Dovelawik Bay to Kangee Camp and from Cape Kitnik over to Tomname Lagoon. Open water to sea ice free conditions lie beyond the northern coast up to the Bering Strait with isolated areas of very open pack ice that are rapidly melting. Strips of sea ice are continuing to stream off the main pack ice remaining near the Gulf of Anadyr and are passing to the northwest of the island at this time.
Wales to...
View Full ReportNear St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice floes continued to melt in the northern Bering Sea this past week. St. Lawrence Island is sea ice free beyond the western, southern, and eastern coastlines. Open water lies off the north coast from near Gambell over to Camp Iveetok. Open to very open pack ice lies off the coast beyond Tomname Lagoon. Strips of sea ice are continuing to stream off the main pack ice remaining near the Gulf of Anadyr and are passing to the northwest of the island at this time.
Wales to Shishmaref
The outer extent of the remaining shorefast ice from Wales to Ikpek...
Near St. Lawrence Island
Sea ice floes remaining in the northern Bering Sea continued to melt quite dramatically this past week. Sea ice remaining in the lagoons along the southern coast of St. Lawrence Island is continuing to melt. The previously shorefast sea ice along the northern coast is continuing to melt out from the shore as it also destabilizes and breaks off. St. Lawrence Island is sea ice free to the west, south, and east. Very open pack ice consisting of brash ice and broken pieces of shorefast ice lies within 2 to 10 miles of the northern coastline, and open pack ice lies...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The remaining sea ice in the northern Bering Sea melted quite dramatically this past week. Ice that was previously shorefast around St. Lawrence Island is flooding and forming melt ponds. This ice is expected to continue to melt in place from the shoreline and to break off in the coming week. Isolated areas of very open pack ice to open water lie near Koozata Lagoon on the southern coastline and Kiloknak Lagoon on the eastern coastline. The island is surrounded by primarily sea-ice-free to open-water areas with the nearest close pack ice located 4 miles...
Near St. Lawrence Island
The large polynya that was present along the southern coastline of St. Lawrence Island last week shifted so it now extends roughly 100 miles off the west coast of the island. An isolated high concentration area of mainly young and new sea ice lies near Powooiliak Bay along the southern coast of the island. An area of open pack ice consisting of small and medium floes lies off the southern coastline from Koozata Lagoon to near Boxer Bay. A polynya near Oomeyaluk Bay extends 5 to 30 miles beyond the shorefast ice edge. Shorefast ice along the northern coastline is...