Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook Archive

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – High pressure remains over the Arctic while weak low pressure stays over the mainland. Some stronger northerly wind will develop through the Bering Strait over the weekend. Near St. Lawrence Island Please note that the most recent imagery we have for this area is the afternoon of June 15th. There is shorefast ice along the north side of St. Lawrence Island between Camp Iveetok and Camp Kulowiyi extending 1 to 3 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north side of the island is open water to very open pack ice that consists of brash ice up to small floes. Confidence is lower for concentration in this area. Close pack ice existed around 7 miles offshore, comprised of brash ice up to medium floes. That area extends northward through the...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – Weak low pressure will exist over much of the Chukchi Sea through the mainland. High pressure remains over the Arctic. Near St. Lawrence Island Please note that the most recent imagery we have for this area is the afternoon of June 7th. There is shorefast ice along the north side of St. Lawrence Island between Camp Iveetok and Camp Kulowiyi extending 1 to 3 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north side of the island is close pack ice consisting of ice cakes to medium floes, along with brash ice extending up to approximately 80 miles to the northeast beyond the shorefast ice. There is also open to close pack ice consisting of brash ice along the north coast west of Camp Iveetok as well as along the west side of the island. South and...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – Low pressure will generally remain over the Bering Strait region through Monday, with high pressure over the eastern Beaufort Sea during that time. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice along the north side of St. Lawrence Island extending 1 to 5 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north side of the island is compact pack ice consisting of medium to vast floes extending up to 18 miles beyond the shorefast ice. The nearest sea ice to Gambell is approximately 20 miles to the west and is close pack ice consisting of mainly brash ice. South of the island is open water. To the east of the island is open pack ice to close pack ice consisting of small to big floes up to 8 miles east of the island. Nome The nearest sea ice is 25...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – A low will meander around the southwest Bering Sea through Sunday as another weak low develops over the central Bering Monday. High pressure will remain over the Chukchi Sea. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice, mainly on the north side of St. Lawrence Island, generally extending 1 to 5 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north side of the island is consolidated to compact pack ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is a polynya consisting of open water beyond the shorefast ice between Gambell and Savoonga that is 15 to 20 miles wide. There is open compact pack ice 10 miles west of Gambell and open water south of the island. To the east of the island is very open pack ice to open water. Nome There is an area of open...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – Generally quiet weather until a low moves across the Aleutian Islands starting on Saturday. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice, mainly on the north side of St. Lawrence Island, generally extending 1 to 5 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north side of the island is consolidated to compact pack ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is a polynya consisting of open water beyond the shorefast ice between Gambell and Savoonga that is 5 to 15 miles wide. There is compact pack ice 2 miles west of Gambell, and open water south of the island. To the east of the island is open pack ice that extends 20 to 25 miles offshore. Nome The only remaining shorefast ice in this area is near Sinuk and it extends up to 2 miles...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – A low will gradually move eastward across the southern Bering Sea through Saturday, then move south into the North Pacific Sunday and Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice, mainly on the north and east side of St. Lawrence Island, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north side of the island is compact pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes. To the east and west of the island is open pack ice that extends 23 miles to the west of the island and 11 miles to the east of the island. To the south of the island is open water extending up to 90 miles. Nome Shorefast ice around the Nome area extends up to 2 miles offshore from Sinuk to near Solomon, and up to 7 miles offshore...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – A low pressure system will remain in the eastern and southern Bering Sea through the week. High pressure will remain over the Arctic, which will keep offshore flow going for the next week. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice, mainly on the north and east side of St. Lawrence Island, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore. There is no shorefast ice remaining on southern shores. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north and east sides of the island is compact pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is a large polynya south of the island that extends 40 to 60 miles away from the island. It is mainly open water. Beyond that polynya is close pack ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is also a polynya...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – High pressure over the Bering Sea will continue to build in from Siberia. Low pressure over the mainland of Alaska will weaken and drift east. Weak low pressure will develop along the southern Beaufort Sea and northern Chukchi Sea Saturday. A north Pacific low will move into the Bering Sunday and Monday then dissipate through Thursday. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice on the north, east, and south sides of St. Lawrence Island, however, it looks to be decaying along the east and south sides of the island. On the north and south sides, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore, and on the east side, extending 2 to 3 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north and east sides of the island is close pack ice to consolidated ice...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – Several low pressure systems will move into the southeastern Bering Sea through Monday. High pressure will remain over the Chukchi Sea. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice on the north, east, and south sides of St. Lawrence Island. On the north and south sides, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore, and on the east side, extending 2 to 5 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north and east sides of the island is close pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes with the exception of an area of open water approximately 4 miles north of Savoonga and stretching 30 miles to the northeast. There is a polynya south of the island that extends up to 32 miles south of Powooiliak (Pugughileq) Camp and 40 miles...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – High pressure builds over the Bering Sea through Saturday. A low will move westward across the North Pacific Sunday through Wednesday. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice on the north, east, and south sides of St. Lawrence Island. On the north side, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore, and on the east side, extending 2 to 5 miles offshore. The south side of the island has minimal shorefast ice, mainly stretching from Powooiliak (Pugughileq) Camp to Silook Camp as well as at Siknik Training Camp and extending up to 3 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north and east sides of the island is very close pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is a polynya south of the island that extends up...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – High pressure will quickly move east across the Bering Sea through Thursday night, then a low will move into the western Bering Sea Friday. That low will slowly move eastward across the central Bering Sea through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice on the north, east, and south sides of St. Lawrence Island. On the north/south sides, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore, and on the east side, extending 2 to 5 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice on the north and east sides of the island is very close pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is a polynya south of the island that extends up to 3 miles from the southern coast, though it is re-freezing quickly. Beyond that polynya is new and...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis – A low pressure and front will move near the Bering Strait region through Friday, weakening in place on Saturday. Another will move from west to east across the Bering Sea Monday into Tuesday, south of St. Matthew Island. Northerly flow sticks around through the middle of the week before a pattern change late in the week. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice on the north, east, and south sides of St. Lawrence Island. On the north/south sides, generally extending 1 to 2 miles offshore, and on the east side, extending 2 to 4 miles offshore. Beyond the shorefast ice is very close pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes. There is a polynya extending from Powooiliak (Pugughileq) Camp to east of Siknik Training Camp up...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis Several weak fronts will affect the Bering Sea, one in the eastern Bering Sea, one in the western Bering Sea. A strong front will traverse the Bering Sea from west to east Monday and Tuesday. The next strong low/front will come into the central Bering Sea on Saturday. The latter will be associated with a low-pressure system moving from west to east around 62N. The next strong front and low pressure moves into the Bering Sea on Sunday. Near St. Lawrence Island There is shorefast ice on the north, east, and south sides of St. Lawrence Island, extending 2 to 4 miles offshore. There is a polynya extending up to 8 miles offshore between Iwoorigan Camp and just west of Savoonga, and another polynya extending 3 to 11 miles offshore from Ataakas Camp to...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis High pressure will gradually move eastward across the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island The only remaining sea ice around St. Lawrence Island is northeast of the island, generally between Camp Iveetok and just east of Camp Kulowiye, extending up to 65 miles from the coast. This is close to very close pack ice consisting of medium to vast floes. Nome This area is now sea ice free and the outlook season has concluded. Brevig Mission/Port Clarence Area This area is now sea ice free and the outlook season has concluded. Wales to Shishmaref Very close pack ice to consolidated ice consisting of medium to vast floes extends up to 13 miles offshore from Wales to Espenberg. Beyond that sea ice, it is mainly open water in this...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis - High pressure will extend into the Bering Sea from the North Pacific. Another area of high pressure will extend from the Canadian Arctic into the Beaufort Sea. Between these two areas, a weak area of low pressure will extend from the Alaska mainland over the Bering Strait. Near St. Lawrence Island The only remaining shorefast ice around St. Lawrence Island is between Camp Iveetok and 5 to 7 miles from Lietnik, and it appears to be deteriorating quickly. It currently extends up to 4 miles from shore. Beyond the shorefast ice, close to very close pack ice consisting of medium to vast floes extends another 55 to 60 miles between offshore between Savoonga and the eastern edge of the island. There is also an area of close pack ice consisting of small...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis Low pressure will dissipate in the far western Bering Sea through Friday. Another low will move just south of the Chain through Monday. High pressure will sit over the Beaufort through the period. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery from the evening of Wednesday, May 27th and morning of Thursday, May 28th show pretty rapid deterioration of the ice around the island. Shorefast ice outside of Niyakpak Lagoon has broken away and there is open water from the Lagoon through Eewak Pt. The shorefast ice from Savoonga through Camp Kulowiye is still intact but appears as if there's water on it and it extends up to 7 miles offshore. Between Kangee Camp and Aingeeyak there is an area of very close pack ice with medium to vast floes beyond any shorefast...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis A broad low pressure over the southern Bering will dissipate while a stronger northwest Pacific low pressure will weaken in place through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery from the evening of Wednesday, May 20th and morning of Thursday, May 21st shows the shorefast ice on the north side of the island remains intact especially from Savoonga eastward, extending up to 7 miles offshore. From Gambell to Kangee Camp, shorefast ice extends from about 1 miles to 3 miles offshore. Between Kangee Camp and Savoonga, there is an area of very close pack ice with medium to vast floes with a bit of open water just west of Savoonga. South of the island is ice free and west of the island is open water. Savoonga east to approximately 10 miles east of...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis A series of lows will move eastward generally along the Aleutian Islands through Monday. High pressure will remain over the high Arctic through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery from the evening of Wednesday, May 13th and morning of Thursday, May 14th shows the shorefast ice on the north side of the island remains intact especially from Savoonga eastward, extending up to 7 miles offshore. From Gambell to Kangee Camp, shorefast ice extends from about 1 miles to 3 miles offshore. Between Kangee Camp and Savoonga, there is an area of open pack ice with medium to vast floes. There is also some shorefast ice on the south side of the island, extending about 1 mile from shore near Powooiliak Camp. South and west of the island are areas of...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis High pressure will remain over the eastern Beaufort Sea through Monday. Low pressure over the southwest Bering Sea will gradually weaken, then another low will move into the same area Friday through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery from the evening of 6 May shows the shorefast ice on the north side of the island remains intact. From Gambell to Kangee Camp it extends from about 1 miles to 4 miles off-shore. Between Kangee Camp and Savoonga there is an area of compact pack ice with medium to vast floes. Shorefast ice continues from just west of Savoonga past Camp Kulowiye, extending southward across the eastern edge of the island and extends roughly 1 to 3 miles away from the coast except for offshore Camp Iveetok where it extends 6–...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis High pressure will remain over the northern Bering Sea, while a low moves eastward across the southern Bering Sea through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery from the evening of 29 April shows the shorefast ice on the north side of the island remains intact. From Gambell to Kangee Camp it extends from about 1.5 miles to 4 miles off-shore. Between Kangee Camp and Savoonga, there is an area of compact pack ice with small to medium floes. Shorefast ice continues from Savoonga past Camp Kulowiye, extending southward across the eastern edge of the island and extends roughly 1 to 3 miles away from the coast except for off-shore Camp Iveetok, where it extends 6 to 7 miles offshore. There is also shorefast ice on the south side of the island...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis A low pressure system in the North Pacific on Wednesday will move over the Alaska Peninsula on Thursday. By Saturday, the low pressure system will move into the Gulf of Alaska and remain there through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery shows that shorefast ice remains intact on the north side of the island, extending 1 to 6 miles from the coast. There is also shorefast ice on the south side of the island, extending up to 6 miles from shore from Powooiliak [Pugughileq] Camp and east. Open pack ice to very open pack ice has appeared across the southern parts of the island. This open to very open pack ice varies in distance, from 8 to 15 miles from Booshu camp, before meeting very close pack ice. The same very close pack ice is 4 to 8...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis A weak low in the southwest Bering Sea will dissipate as another larger and stronger low moves into the southern Bering Sea Thursday and gradually weakens through Monday. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery shows that shorefast ice remains intact on the north side of the island, extending 1 to 6 miles from the coast. There is also shorefast ice on the south side of the island, extending up to 6 miles from shore. A couple polynyas have formed north of the shorefast ice from near Iwoorigan Camp to north of Kangee Camp, as well as from north of Camp Iveetok to near Camp Kulowiye. Both polynyas extend up to 9 miles from the shorefast ice. Otherwise, consolidated to compact pack ice consisting of big to giant floes surrounds St. Lawrence Island...

Click the name of each community below to view more frequently updated and detailed information from the National Weather Service. Synopsis A low will move northward through the western Bering Sea through Saturday, as high pressure slowly moves eastward across the southern Bering Sea. Near St. Lawrence Island Satellite imagery shows that shorefast ice extends 1 to 6 miles from the north side of the island. A polynya has formed north of the shorefast ice from Gambell to Kangee Camp extending up to 4 miles beyond the shorefast ice, as well as from Savoonga to approximately 18 miles southeast of the island extending generally 1 to 3 miles beyond the shorefast ice. Otherwise, very close pack ice consisting of big to giant floes surrounds St. Lawrence Island. Nome Sea ice is shorefast from 1 to 6 miles from the Solomon to Banner coastline, then consolidated pack ice covers the rest of the...

State 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) This past winter in the northern Bering Sea region, as well as across Alaska, was dominated by very cold temperatures. This cold period began in mid-December 2019 and continued through mid-March 2020. Figure 1 shows these unusually cold temperatures at Nome, Alaska. Aside from a relatively warm period in mid-January and a few days in February, temperature extremes frequently reached more than 15–20°F colder than average, with a couple days more than 25°F colder than average. These frigid temperatures brought back the sense of a “real-winter” and worked to thicken sea ice across the region. This thickening helped to stabilize shorefast ice and to overall build an ice cover more resistant to storms...

Special Statement from National Weather Service Alaska National Weather Service SIWO forecast information is not available this week due to unforeseen circumstances. Please go to https://weather.gov/afg for your local NWS marine and public weather forecasts and https://weather.gov/ice for sea ice analysis and forecasts at this time. We hope to have NWS weather and ice forecast information available once again next week. Sea ice maps are still available. The State of the Ice at Season's Start Report will be provided by Matthew Druckenmiller and Hajo Eicken in next week's report. NWS 5-day Sea Ice Forecast NWS Sea Ice Stage Analysis