Wales lost shorefast ice early in the season. Ice along the shore has been crushed and broken. This is a very unusual event for Wales as many of our hunters rely on great ice conditions for whale and other sea mammal catch for food.
Observation by Robert Tokeinna:
I would like to share recent pictures of Wales. These set of photos are documentation that Wales is losing their shore fast ice. Usually, Wales has shore fast ice until June or so in more recent years though it has been shorter; but for some reason and warming of the ocean, we lost all the shore fast ice. I rode up the beach to find all the ice not intact, but crushed and broken up. This is a very unusual event for Wales as many of our hunters rely on great ice conditions for whale and other sea mammal catch for food.
Olivia Lee, research professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, writes:
It is so stunning to see these images from Wales - where you really anticipated that they might have kept their fastice for longer than other communities. It's striking that despite less abnormal winter ice conditions this spring is looking to be another very early ice break-up season.
Comments from LEO Editors:
According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center Arctic Sea Ice News & Analysis, the February 2019 sea ice extent is the seventh lowest in the satellite record. Measurements of sea ice extent are similar to those recorded in 2015, and remain above the 2017 record low maximum.
Since January, LEO has received several observations documenting areas of open ice and weather patterns that affect shorefast ice. In a LEO post from Shishmaref, Olivia writes that:
The trend towards warmer fall and winter temperature in the Bering Sea in recent years is affecting the timing of sea ice formation, and potential sea ice thickness. Longer open water periods (related to warmer sea surface waters) allow sea ice greater mobility to move in response to the wind.
In a LEO post from Nome, Olivia also comments:
The northwest Alaska Arctic this year is not showing anomalously low ice conditions this winter. This is a good break in the trend after 4 sequential years of unprecedented low winter and spring sea ice. However, despite a return to more normal sea ice concentrations, there appears to be little evidence of greater stable shorefast ice, and strong winds and currents can continue to influence movement of coastal shorefast ice.
Sea ice
Observations From Members