SEA ICE BREAKUP AND TIDAL FLAT PROCESSES, FROBISHER BAY, BAFFIN ISLAND

1986 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 168-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. B. McCann ◽  
J. E. Dale
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Tidal Flat ◽  
Baffin Island ◽  
Ice Breakup

scholarly journals Subarctic tidal flats in areas of large tidal range, southern Baffin Island, eastern Canada

2011 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 183-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. B. McCann ◽  
J. E. Dale ◽  
P. B. Hale
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Intertidal Zone ◽  
Tidal Flats ◽  
Tidal Range ◽  
Baffin Island ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Ice Breakup ◽  
Cumberland Sound ◽  
Ice Floes ◽  
Mode Of Transport

Wide, boulder-strewn intertidal flats occur around the head of Frobisher Bay and along parts of the shoreline of Cumberland Sound, in southeast Baffin Island. The coastal environment is characterized by large tidal ranges, severe winter sea ice conditions, and a relative sea level history which involves rapid and then decreasing land emergence during the earlier part of the Holocene, succeeded by slight recent submergence. Summer field investigations were carried out at two sites, Koojesse Inlet on Frobisher Bay, where ice breakup conditions were also monitored, and Pangnirtung Fiord off Cumberland Sound. The results are summarized under three headings: physical and biological zonation across the tidal flats; tidal action and sea ice processes; and geological evolution of the tidal flats. Comparisons are made with similar settings described by others in Labrador and Ungava Bay. The sedimentary shores at both Baffin Island sites exhibit a distinct physical zonation, most evident in the concentration of boulders in the middle tidal flat zone at Koojesse Inlet and in the boulder barricade at the seaward margin of the Pangnirtung flats. Biological observations show a zonation of intertidal flora and fauna across the intertidal zone at Koojesse Inlet. An outstanding problem concerns the mode of transport of very large boulders. Pushing and rolling, by ice floes which are confined to the intertidal zone by the solid ice in the offshore zone during the critical early phase of breakup may be more appropriate processes than ice rafting.

scholarly journals Winter-to-summer transition of Arctic sea ice breakup and floe size distribution in the Beaufort Sea

Elem Sci Anth ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (0) ◽  
pp. 40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Byongjun Hwang ◽  
Jeremy Wilkinson ◽  
Edward Maksym ◽  
Hans C. Graber ◽  
Axel Schweiger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Size Distribution ◽  
Beaufort Sea ◽  
Arctic Sea Ice ◽  
Ice Breakup ◽  
Arctic Sea

Human geographies of sea ice: freeze/thaw processes around Cape Dorset, Nunavut, Canada

Polar Record ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gita J. Laidler ◽  
Pootoogoo Elee
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Current Strength ◽  
Ice Formation ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Baffin Island ◽  
Freeze Thaw ◽  
Ice Conditions ◽  
Inuit Knowledge

ABSTRACTSea ice has been, and continues to be, an integral component of life in the Inuit community of Cape Dorset, Nunavut. Located on an island of the same name off the southwestern coast of Baffin Island, the strong Hudson Strait currents prevent extensive ice formation around the community. Nevertheless, sea ice remains an important travel and hunting platform, enabling access to Baffin Island, hunting and fishing grounds, and nearby communities. With the combined importance, dynamism, and continuous use of this frozen ocean environment, local Inuit elders and hunters have developed a detailed and nuanced understanding of sea ice conditions, freeze/thaw processes, and the influences of winds and currents on ice conditions. Working collaboratively with the community of Cape Dorset since October, 2003, we present the results of 30 semi-directed interviews, 5 sea ice trips, and 2 focus groups to provide a baseline understanding of local freezing processes (near-shore, open water, sea ice thickening, landfast ice, floe edge, and tidal cracks), melting processes (snow melt, water accumulation and drainage, break-up, and cracks/leads), wind influences on sea ice (wind direction and strength affecting sea ice formation, and movement), and current influences on sea ice (tidal variations and current strength affecting sea ice formation, movement, and polynya size/location). Strong emphasis is placed on Inuktitut terminology and spatial delineations of localised ice conditions and features. Therefore, this paper provides insights into local scale ice conditions and dynamics around Cape Dorset that are not captured in regional scale studies of Hudson Bay and/or Hudson Strait. Results have the potential to inform future research efforts on local/regional sea ice monitoring, the relationship between Inuit knowledge, language, and the environment, and addressing community interests through targeted studies.

scholarly journals Field Test 1 of Compressive Strength of First-Year Sea Ice

1983 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 253-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. K. Sinha
Keyword(s):  
Compressive Strength ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Failure Time ◽  
Rate Sensitivity ◽  
Test System ◽  
First Year ◽  
Test Machine ◽  
Baffin Island ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Average Strain Rate

A test program undertaken in April 1981 on the uniaxial compressive strength of freshly recovered first-year columnar-grained sea ice at a portable field laboratory floating on top of the ice cover in Eclipse Sound, Baffin Island, Canadian Arctic, is reported. Using a small battery-operated test machine, both vertical and horizontal samples were tested so that the load could be applied either parallel or perpendicular to the axis of the columns. Rate sensitivity of the observed strength is discussed in terms of measured average strain-rate and average stress-rate to upper yield or failure. Strain and time aspects of the test results are considered as well. Although vertical samples showed considerably greater strength than horizontal samples, no significant differences were detected in the failure strains. Examination of the interdependence of failure stress and failure time revealed certain anomalies in the results for vertical samples that could be linked to the performance characteristics of the test machine. As such problems could be common to any test system, methods of analysis are proposed for rational examination of the results.

scholarly journals Multiyear Volume, Liquid Freshwater, and Sea Ice Transports through Davis Strait, 2004–10*

2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 1244-1266 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Curry ◽  
C. M. Lee ◽  
B. Petrie ◽  
R. E. Moritz ◽  
R. Kwok
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Volume Transport ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Baffin Island ◽  
Transport Time ◽  
Freshwater Transport ◽  
Davis Strait ◽  
Standard Deviations ◽  
Thickness Measurements

Abstract Davis Strait is a primary gateway for freshwater exchange between the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans including freshwater contributions from west Greenland and Canadian Arctic Archipelago glacial melt. Data from six years (2004–10) of continuous measurements collected by a full-strait moored array and concurrent high-resolution Seaglider surveys are used to estimate volume and liquid freshwater transports through Davis Strait, with respective annual averages of −1.6 ± 0.5 Sverdrups (Sv; 1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) and −93 ± 6 mSv (negative sign indicates southward transport). Sea ice export contributes an additional −10 ± 1 mSv of freshwater transport, estimated using satellite ice area transport and moored upward-looking sonar ice thickness measurements. Interannual and annual variability of the net transports are large, with average annual volume and liquid freshwater transport standard deviations of 0.7 Sv and 17 mSv and with interannual standard deviations of 0.3 Sv and 15 mSv. Moreover, there are no clear trends in the net transports over the 6-yr period. However, salinity in the upper 250 m between Baffin Island and midstrait decreases starting in September 2009 and remains below average through August 2010, but appears to return to normal by the end of 2010. This freshening event, likely caused by changes in arctic freshwater storage, is not apparent in the liquid freshwater transport time series due to a reduction in southward volume transport in 2009–10. Reanalysis of Davis Strait mooring data from the period 1987–90, compared to the 2004–10 measurements, reveals less arctic outflow and warmer, more saline North Atlantic inflow during the most recent period.

Storm-induced sea-ice breakup and the implications for ice extent

Nature ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 509 (7502) ◽  
pp. 604-607 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. L. Kohout ◽  
M. J. M. Williams ◽  
S. M. Dean ◽  
M. H. Meylan
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Ice Breakup

A Step-Change in the Date of Sea-Ice Breakup in Western Hudson Bay

ARCTIC ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian B.T. Scott ◽  
Gareth J. Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Step Change ◽  
Hudson Bay ◽  
Ice Breakup ◽  
Western Hudson Bay

scholarly journals Growth Rate and Salinity Profile of First-Year Sea Ice in the High Arctic

1981 ◽  
Vol 27 (96) ◽  
pp. 315-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Nakawo ◽  
N. K Sinha
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Physical Properties ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
First Year ◽  
Baffin Island ◽  
Growth Season ◽  
Method Of Calculation ◽  
Salinity Profile ◽  
Snow Conditions

AbstractThis paper describes the growth of sea ice and the salinity profiles observed in Eclipse Sound near Pond Inlet, Baffin Island, Canada, during the winter of 1977–78. A numerical method of calculation has been developed to incorporate the variations in snow conditions and physical properties of ice and snow during the growth season. It is shown that the growth rate can be predicted reasonably well. It is also shown that the vertical salinity profile in the ice towards the end of the season, provides a record of previous climatological conditions. A dependence has been shown between the predicted growth rate and the measured salinity.

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