Formation and Characteristics of Icebergs, Glacier

MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY OF
CARAGA, INC.
METEOROLOGY &
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
TOPIC # 3
Formation and characteristics of icebergs, glacier
and sea ice
INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B. BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY & OCEANOGRAPHY 2

COURSE CODE / DESCRIPTIVE TITLE:
METEOROLOGY & OCEANOGRAPHY
2
• Function: A-II/2 Navigation at the Management Level
• STCW’78 Competences: A-II/2.F1.C8. Forecast weather and
oceanographic conditions
• KUP/s A-II/2 F1 C8 KUP2: Knowledge of the characteristics of various
weather systems, including tropical revolving storms and avoidance of
storm centres and the dangerous quadrants.
• Course Outcomes:
• At the end of the course, students should be able to:
• C02. Explain tropical revolving storms and how to avoid and/or escape
storm centers and dangerous quadrants in the northern and southern
hemisphere
INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

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LEARNING OUTCOMES
• After the lesson, the student shall be able to:
1) Explain the formation of icebergs from floating glacier tongues and from ice
shelves, and the characteristics of each
2) Discuss the formation of sea ice
3) Define ice tongue, ice shelf
4) Define pack ice and fast ice
5) Discuss the normal seasons and probable tracks of North Atlantic bergs from
origin to decay

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LEARNING OUTCOMES
6) Define the outer limits of the area in which icebergs may be encountered in
the North Atlantic
7) Discuss the normal and extreme limits of iceberg travel in the southern
oceans during summer and winter
8) Explain the reasons for the decay of icebergs
9) Describe the areas affected by sea ice in regions frequented by shipping

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LEARNING OUTCOMES
10) Define the ranges at which observers may expect to detect ice visually in
varying conditions of visibility
11) Discuss the limitations of radar as a means of detecting ice
12) Describe the factors which may give rise to ice accretion
13) Explain the reports to be made under International Conventions when ice is
encountered
14) State the iceberg nomenclature in use by the International Ice Patrol

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ICE AND THE NAVIGATOR
INTRODUCTION
• Ice is of direct concern to the navigator because of the following:
1) it restricts and sometimes controls vessel movements;
2) it affects dead reckoning by forcing frequent changes of course and speed;
3) it affects piloting by altering the appearance or obliterating the features of
landmarks;
4) it hinders the establishment and maintenance of aids to navigation;
5) it affects the use of electronic equipment by affecting propagation of radio
waves;

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INTRODUCTION
6) it produces changes in surface features and in radar returns from these
features;
7) it affects celestial navigation by altering the refraction and obscuring the
horizon and celestial bodies either directly or by the weather it influences, and
8) it affects charts by introducing several plotting problems.
9) Because of this direct concern with ice, the prospective polar navigators must
acquaint themselves with its nature and extent in the area they expect to
navigate.

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INTRODUCTION
• Ice is found all over the world in a wide variety of forms. More than simply
frozen water, the various forms of ice tell the story of their environment as they
change with the seasons and show trends of the changing climate on Earth.

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INTRODUCTION
• Ice comes in many forms and shapes.
1) Glaciers is formed from compacted snow; they are composed entirely of fresh
water.
2) Icebergs are chunks of floating ice that have "calved" (broken off) from a
glacier.
3) Pack Ice or Sea Ice is formed by the freezing of seawater, because of the salt
it contains, freezes in a different manner compared to fresh water.
4) Multi-year ice: In the central Arctic, the ice never thaws completely in summer,
and thus it is known as multi-year ice. This ice ranges in thickness from 15
feet to 25 feet.

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ICEBERGS
• An iceberg is ice that broke off from glaciers or shelf ice and is floating in open
water.
• Icebergs float in the ocean, but are made of frozen freshwater, not saltwater.

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ICEBERGS
• To be classified as an iceberg, the height of the ice must be greater than 16
feet above sea level and the thickness must be 98-164 feet and the ice must
cover an area of at least 5,382 square feet.

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ICEBERGS
• Icebergs are large chunks of ice that break off from glaciers. This process is
called calving.
• Parts of it may break off or calve, forming separate smaller bergs.
• Bergy bits a relatively large piece of floating ice, generally extending 1 to 5
meters above the sea surface and 5 to 15 meters length at the waterline.
• Growler a smaller piece of ice large enough to inflict serious damage to a
vessel because of the noise it sometimes makes as it bobs up and down in the
sea.
• Growlers extend less than 1 meter above the sea surface and about a length or
about 5 to 15 meters.

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ICEBERGS
• Growlers can be greenish or have semi-transparent blue tones that blend into
the seawater and make them particularly difficult to detect visually.
• Bergy bits and growlers are usually pieces calved from icebergs, but they may
be the remains of a mostly melted iceberg.

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ICEBERGS
• Icebergs are also classified by shape, most
commonly being either tabular or non-tabular.
• Tabular icebergs have steep sides and a flat top.
• B15, the world’s largest iceberg, (photo right)
broke off of an Antarctic ice shelf during a storm, in
the year 2000. It measured 183 miles long and 23
miles wide.
• As B15 traveled around Antarctica and headed
north into warmer waters, the melting process
increased. When an iceberg melts and becomes
less than 16 feet in length they are called growlers.
• As of, 2020, B15 is now just a drop of water in the
world’s oceans.

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ICEBERGS
• Non-tabular icebergs have different shapes, with domes and spires.

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ICEBERGS
• The ice below the water is dangerous to ships. The sharp, hidden ice
can easily tear a hole in the bottom of a ship.
• A particularly treacherous part of the North Atlantic has come to be
known as Iceberg Alley because of the high number of icebergs that
find their way there.
• Iceberg Alley is located 402.3 kilometers (250 miles) east and
southeast of Newfoundland, Canada.
• This has been a huge issue for shipping vessels, obviously, and was
a contributing factor in the famous sinking of the Titanic in 1912.

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ICEBERGS
• Most icebergs are white in color, but
some may appear blue or even green.
Ice is full of tiny air bubbles that scatter
all color wavelengths the same amount,
giving the ice a white appearance.
• If the ice is compressed, the bubbles are
squeezed out and the blue light is
scattered much more than other colors –
making the ice appear blue.
• Algae often grow on the underside of
sea ice and icebergs, producing green
stripes that are only revealed when the
ice rolls over and exposes the previously
underwater sections.

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ICEBERGS
• One danger from icebergs is their tendency to break or
capsize. Soon after a berg is calved, while remaining in
high latitude waters, 60-80% of its bulk is submerged.
But as the berg drifts into warmer waters the underside
begins to melt, and as the berg becomes unstable, it can
sometimes roll over.
• Eroded icebergs that have not yet capsized have a
jagged and possibly dirty appearance. A recently
capsized berg will usually be smooth, clean, and curved
in appearance.
• Previous waterlines at odd angles can sometimes be
seen after progressive tilting or one or more capsizing's.

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ICEBERGS
• The stability of a berg can sometimes be noted by its reaction to ocean swells.
• It is extremely dangerous for a vessel to approach an iceberg closely, even one
which appears stable, because in addition to the danger from capsizing, unseen
cracks can cause icebergs to split in two or calve off large chunks.
• These sections can be many times the size of a vessel and displace huge
volumes of water as they break away or turn over, inducing an immense swell.

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ICEBERGS
• Another danger is from underwater extensions, called rams, which are usually
formed due to melting or erosion above the waterline at a faster rate than below.
• Rams may also extend from a vertical ice cliff, also known as an ice front, which
forms the seaward face of a massive ice sheet or floating glacier; or from an ice
wall, which is the ice cliff forming the seaward margin of a glacier which is
aground.
• Icebergs may be helpful to the mariner in some ways.
• The melt water found on the surface of icebergs is a source of freshwater, and
in the past, some daring seamen have made their vessels fast to icebergs
which, because they are affected more by currents than the wind, have
proceeded to tow them out of the ice pack.

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ICEBERGS
• Icebergs can be used as a navigational aid in extreme latitudes where charted depths
may be in doubt or non-existent.
• Water depth will be at least equal to the exposed height of the grounded iceberg.
• Grounded bergs remain stationary while current and wind move sea ice past them.
Drifting ice may pile up against the up current side of a grounded berg.
• Iceberg Drift:
• Icebergs extend a considerable distance below the surface and have relatively small
“sail areas” compared to their underwater body.
• The near-surface current is primarily responsible for drift; however, observations have
shown that wind can govern iceberg drift at a particular location or time.

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ICEBERGS
• The relative influence of currents and winds on the drift of an iceberg varies
according to the direction and magnitude of the forces acting on its sail area and
subsurface cross-sectional area.
• As icebergs deteriorate through melting, erosion, and calving, observations
indicate the height to draft ratio may approach 1:1 during their final stage of
decay, when they arereferred to as a dry dock, winged, horned, or pinnacle
iceberg. The height to draft ratios found for icebergs in their various stages are
presented in Table 3203a.

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ICEBERGS

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ICEBERGS
• Icebergs in the North Atlantic:
• Sea level glaciers exist on several landmasses bordering the northern seas, including
Alaska, Greenland, Svalbard (Spitsbergen), Zemlya Frantsa-Iosifa (Franz Josef Land),
Novaya Zemlya, and Severnaya Zemlya (Nicholas II Land).
• Those calved from Franz Josef Land glaciers drift southwest in the Barents Sea to the
vicinity of Bear Island.
• The majority of icebergs produced along the east coast of Greenland remain near their
source. A small number of bergy bits, growlers, and small icebergs are transported south
from this region by the East Greenland Current around Kap Farvel at the southern tip of
• Greenland and then northward by the West Greenland Current into Davis Strait to the
vicinity of 67°N. Relatively few of these icebergs menace shipping, but some are carried
to the south and southeast of Kap Farvel by a counterclockwise current gyre centered
near 57°N and 43°W.

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ICEBERGS
• The main source of the icebergs encountered in the North Atlantic is the west
coast of Greenland between 67°N and 76°N, where approximately 10,000–15,000
icebergs are calved each year.
• In this area there are about 100 lowlying coastal glaciers, 20 of them being the
principal producers of icebergs. Of these 20 major glaciers, 2 located in Disko Bugt
between 69°N and 70°N are estimated to contribute 28 percent of all icebergs
appearing in Baffin Bay and the Labrador Sea.
• The West Greenland Current carries icebergs from this area northward and then
westward until they encounter the south flowing Labrador Current.
• West Greenland icebergs generally spend their first winter locked in the Baffin Bay
pack ice; however, a large number can also be found within the sea ice extending
along the entire Labrador coast by late winter

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ICEBERGS

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ICEBERGS
• Icebergs that drift into warmer waters eventually melt. Scientists estimate the
lifespan of an iceberg, from first snowfall on a glacier to final melting in the ocean,
to be as long as 3,000 years.
• This comes from the fact that most of an iceberg (about 90%) is submerged and
cannot be seen. Also, icebergs melt from the bottom up instead of the top down,
which means you never know quite how much more iceberg is concealed
underwater.
• Warmer temperatures in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current lead to a rapid melting
and decay of icebergs.
• Icebergs are monitored worldwide by the U.S. National Ice Center (NIC). NIC
produces analyses and forecasts of Arctic, Antarctic, Great Lakes, and
Chesapeake Bay ice conditions. NIC is the only organization that names and
tracks all Antarctic Icebergs.

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GLACIER ICE
• A glacier is a large, perennial accumulation of crystalline ice, snow, rock,
sediment, and often liquid water that originates on land and moves down slope
under the influence of its own weight and gravity.
• Typically, glaciers exist and may even form in areas where:
1) mean annual temperatures are close to the freezing point.
2) winter precipitation produces significant accumulations of snow.
3) temperatures throughout the rest of the year do not result in the complete loss
of the previous winter’s snow accumulation.
▪ Glaciers are classified by their size (i.e. ice sheet, ice cap, valley glacier, cirque
glacier), location, and thermal regime (i.e., polar vs. temperate). Glaciers are
sensitive indicators of changing climate.
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GLACIER ICE
• Glaciers are large, freshwater ice masses on land that are formed from falling
snow that eventually becomes so heavy that it's compressed into ice.
• Glaciers are smaller forms of ice caps and ice sheets, all of which are large
masses of ice that slowly creep across the landscape, irrespective of what's
underneath them.

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GLACIER ICE
• A glacier forms when snow accumulates over time, turns to ice, and begins to
flow outwards and downwards under the pressure of its own weight.
• In polar and high-altitude alpine regions, glaciers generally accumulate more
snow in the winter than they lose in the summer from melting, evaporation, or
calving.
• Glaciers stop growing where they meet the ocean, and the warmer saltwater
melts the edge of the frozen freshwater mass.
• Warming ocean temperatures have increased the rate of melting of glaciers and
other ice formations such as icebergs and ice shelves in or next to the ocean.

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GLACIER ICE
• How old is glacier ice?
1) The age of the oldest glacier ice
in Antarctica may approach
1,000,000 years old
2) The age of the oldest glacier ice
in Greenland is more than
100,000 years old
3) The age of the oldest Alaskan
glacier ice ever recovered (from
a basin between Mt. Bona and
Mt. Churchill) is about 30,000
years old.

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GLACIER ICE
• Glacier ice is blue because the red (long wavelengths) part of white light is
absorbed by ice and the blue (short wavelengths) light is transmitted and
scattered. The longer the path light travels in ice, the more blue it appears.
• Glacier ice is an aggregate of irregularly shaped, interlocking single crystals
that range in size from a few millimetres to several tens of centimetres.
Processes are involved in the transformation of snowpacks to glacier ice, and
they proceed at a rate that depends on wetness and temperature.
• Snow crystals in the atmosphere are tiny hexagonal plates, needles, stars, or
other intricate shapes. Deposited snowpack these intricate shapes are usually
unstable, and molecules tend to evaporate off the sharp (high curvature) points
of crystals and be condensed into hollows in the ice grains. This causes a
general rounding of the tiny ice grains so that they fit more closely together.

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GLACIER ICE
• The wind may break off the points of the intricate crystals and thus pack them more
tightly. Thus, the density of the snowpack generally increases with time from an initial
low value of 50–250 kilograms per cubic metre (3–15 pounds per cubic foot).
• This densification of the snow proceeds more slowly after reaching a density of
500–600 kilograms per cubic metre. When the density of the aggregate reaches about
830 to 840 kilograms per cubic metre, the air spaces between grains are sealed off,
and the material becomes impermeable to fluids.
• With time and the application of stress, the density rises further by the compression of
air bubbles, and at great depths the air is absorbed into the ice crystal lattices, and the
ice becomes clear. Only rarely in mountain glaciers does the density exceed 900
kilograms per cubic metre, but at great depths in ice sheets the density may approach
that of pure ice (917 kilograms per cubic metre at 0 °C and atmospheric pressure).

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GLACIER ICE
• Snow that has survived one melting season is called firn (or névé); its density
usually is greater than 500 kilograms per cubic metre in temperate regions but
can be as low as 300 kilograms per cubic metre in polar regions. The
permeability change at a density of about 840 kilograms per cubic metre marks
the transition from firn to glacier ice.
• Gravity causes the ice inside glaciers to change shape and move. Glaciers flow
from higher ground to lower ground. However, they flow so slowly that if you
were standing next to a glacier, you probably wouldn't notice it was moving. In
cold and snowy climates, glaciers can flow all the way down to the sea.
Sometimes pieces of these glaciers–called icebergs–can break off into the
ocean.

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GLACIER ICE
• Glaciers Life Cycle:
1) Birth = snow fall & snow compression at the top of the
glacier cause to ice accumulation.
2) From snow to ice = snowflakes are rounded &
compressed by pressure until they become glacial ice.
3) Tributaries = smaller glaciers join the flow, causing the
main glacier to grow in size.
4) Outflow = the glacier loses ice & consistency because
of the melting & evaporation.
5) Melting = the water from the melted stream flows out
of the glacier through channels & tunnels.
6) Breakage = ice blocks detached at the front of the
glacier & form Icebergs.

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ICE SHELF
▪ An ice shelf is a thick floating platform of ice attached to land and projects out to sea. Ice shelves fringe the
periphery of coastal embayment's in Antarctica, Greenland and the Canadian Arctic islands.
▪ An Ice shelf has the following distinguishing features:

1) Has a fairly level or gently undulating surface
2) Is attached to the coast of an ocean or lake along at least one edge
3) The seward edge floats freely in deep water
4) Can be 650 to 980 feet thick and may extend hundreds of miles out to sea from the
coastline
5) Contains frozen fresh water ice (formed from snow accumulation or glacier ice)
6) More ice is added to shelf from flow of the ice on land and from new snow

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ICE SHELF
▪ Ice shelves are floating tongues of ice that extend from glaciers grounded on land. Ice shelves are
part of the ocean, so they don’t affect sea level rise in and of themselves. They are constantly
moving from a solid to a liquid already.
▪ But ice shelves buttress all the glacial ice on land. Think of them like a wall blocking all the ice on
land from flowing into the ocean. If you take the ice shelves away, gravity starts pulling all the other
ice to the ocean.

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ICE SHELF
▪ Ice shelves are important, because they play a role in the stability of the Antarctic
Ice Sheet and the ice sheet's mass balance and are important for ocean
stratification and bottom water formation; this helps drive the world's thermohaline
circulation.
▪ Ice shelves are only found in Antarctica, Greenland, Northern Canada, and the
Russian Arctic. The boundary between the floating ice shelf and the anchor ice
(resting on bedrock) that feeds it is the grounding line. The thickness of ice shelves
can range from about 100 m (330 ft) to 1,000 m (3,300 ft).
▪ Ice shelves form in areas where cold ocean water lies next to a large continental
glacier or ice sheet that reaches the sea. Under cooling or cold conditions, the ice
that reaches the sea will flow out over the ocean, floating as a thick ice plate on top
of it.

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ICE SHELF
▪ Difference between a Glacier and an Ice Shelf is that glaciers are land-based as large sheets of ice
and snow on land, while ice shelves are technically part of the ocean.
▪ Ice shelves have always melted, but in an era of warming polar environments, it’s now happening at
a faster rate. Most melting happens where the ice meets the ocean and largely goes unnoticed –
until an ice shelf collapses, an increasingly frequent occurrence over the past decade.
▪ Across polar landscapes, glaciers are advancing faster, which causes true sea level rise. Removing
the ice shelves doesn’t make sea level rise, but it’s removing a key protection for the glaciers that
are advancing rapidly, which really would affect sea level rise.

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ICE SHELF

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ICE TONGUE
▪ Ice tongues are simply floating platforms of ice
which are attached to the front of
marine-terminating glaciers and extend into the
sea.
▪ Ice tongues differ from ice shelves as they are
confined by valley walls and have a narrow
width relative to their length, hence their name.
▪ ERUBUS ICE TONGUE

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SEA ICE
▪ Sea ice is frozen seawater that floats on the ocean surface. It forms in both the
Arctic and the Antarctic in each hemisphere’s winter; it retreats in the summer but
does not completely disappear.
▪ This floating ice has a profound influence on the polar environment, influencing
ocean circulation, weather, and regional climate.
▪ Sea ice covers about 7% of the ocean at any time and makes up about 66% of the
Earth’s permanent ice cover by area, but only 0.1% of the ice in terms of volume.
▪ This is because sea ice is a vast but thin sheet of cover compared to the glacial ice
caps that are more localized but may be several kilometers thick.

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SEA ICE
▪ An iceberg (glacial ice) embedded in a thinner layer of sea ice.

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SEA ICE
▪ Sea ice cover around Antarctica fluctuates between about 21 million km2 in winter
to around 1.3 million km2 in the summer, with most Antarctic sea ice lasting only a
year. Seasonal changes in ice cover are less pronounced in the Arctic, from about
14 million km2 in winter to 6.5 million km2 in summer.
▪ About half of the sea ice in the Arctic lasts more than a year to become multi-year
ice. This difference arises because Antarctica is surrounded by water, so the ice
expands into warmer water and eventually melts.
▪ The Arctic Ocean is enclosed by continents, so only about 10% of the ice escapes
into the Atlantic between Greenland and Spitzbergen.
▪ The rest is trapped and becomes multi-year ice or perennial ice, averaging around
7 years old, and 3-5 m thick, compared to first year ice at 1-2 m thick.

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SEA ICE
▪ Formation of Sea Ice:
▪ Because of the salt content, seawater begins to freeze at about –1.8o
C, a lower temperature than for fresh water.
▪ Ice formation begins at the surface with the formation of small
needle-like ice crystals called frazil, which accumulate and make the
water appear slushy and cloudy; this stage is referred to as grease ice.
▪ In calmer water these small crystals can freeze together into a thin
surface layer called nilas, which can reach a thickness of up to 10 cm.

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SEA ICE
▪ Stages in sea ice
formation.
A. Grease ice,
B. Nilas,
C. Pancake ice,
D. Ice floes.

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SEA ICE
▪ Wave action can break up the nilas into small mats
1-2 m across, which then bump into each other and
form rounded shapes with raised edges, called
pancake ice.
▪ If temperatures remain cold the pancake ice freezes
together into solid ice floes, a hard surface covering
the ocean (D). Ice floes then freeze together into ice
fields.
▪ Once ice floes form, the water underneath becomes
insulated and heat loss to the atmosphere declines,
so the water no longer cools and no more ice
formation occurs.

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SEA ICE
▪ Wave action can break up the nilas into small mats 1-2 m
across, which then bump into each other and form rounded
shapes with raised edges, called pancake ice.
▪ If temperatures remain cold the pancake ice freezes
together into solid ice floes, a hard surface covering the
ocean (D). Ice floes then freeze together into ice fields.
▪ Once ice floes form, the water underneath becomes
insulated and heat loss to the atmosphere declines, so the
water no longer cools and no more ice formation occurs.
▪ As a result, young sea ice is usually relatively thin, not
more than 3-4 m thick.

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SEA ICE
▪ The ice can get thicker through precipitation; there is not a lot of precipitation at the poles, but due
to the low temperatures, whatever does occur tends to accumulate rather than melt.
▪ When the large sheets of sea ice are formed, they exist in one of two formations. Fast ice, or
land-fast ice, refers to the large, solid ice sheets that are attached to land.
▪ The pack ice consists of the smaller, free-floating pieces of sea ice. They may have formed
independently or may have broken off from the fast ice.
FAST ICE PACK ICE

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SEA ICE
▪ Fast Ice: Ice which forms and remains fast along the coast. It may be attached to the shore, to an
ice wall, to an ice front, between shoals or grounded icebergs. Vertical fluctuations may be
observed during changes of sea level. It may be formed “in-situ” from water or by freezing of
floating ice of any age to shore and can extend a few metres or several hundred kilometres from
the coast. It may be more than one year old in which case it may be prefixed with the appropriate
age category (old, second-year or multi-year). If higher than 2 m above sea level, it is called an ice
shelf.

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SEA ICE
▪ Pack ice is one of the most widely seen variations of ice, defined simply as any area of sea ice that
is not attached to land and is made up of smaller pieces of ice that have frozen together.
▪ If you have ever sailed around Antarctica or the Arctic, you can hardly have avoided encountering
pack ice that is either loose or dense.
▪ Pack ice is made up of smaller ice fragments that have frozen together into a solid body. These
smaller pieces are called drift ice, which comes in various forms.
▪ Ice floes are the largest and most common form of the drift ice that comprises pack ice. Ice floes
can be several meters wide, even several miles, commonly colliding and pressing against other ice
floes that drift on the surface of the sea.
▪ When currents and winds bring these floes together and they freeze into a single large mass, the
result is pack ice. Naturally, pack ice often blocks sea routes, securing the careers of many an
icebreaker.

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SEA ICE
PACK ICE:

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SEA ICE
▪ Final pack ice formation:
▪ When pack ice grows to a substantial thickness, it is due more to the currents than
the temperature.
▪ Pack ice will not continuously grow due to freezing alone, because at a certain
point the ice simply insulates itself, making it harder for the temperature to impact
it.
▪ Adding to this effect, sea brine is excreted from pack ice the thicker that ice gets.
▪ Sinking through the pack ice, this brine makes the salinity under the ice higher,
decreasing the freezing point to a lower temperature: -1.8°C (28.76°F).

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SEA ICE TYPES
▪ There are various types of sea ice, according to its stage of development. Within each stage below,
various sub-types also exist, depending on the internal structure of the ice.
1) New Ice: A general term for recently formed ice which includes frazil ice, grease ice, slush and
shuga. These types of ice are composed of ice crystals which are only weakly frozen together (if
at all) and have a definite form only while they are afloat.
2) Nilas: A thin elastic crust of ice, easily bending on waves and swell and under pressure growing
in a pattern of interlocking “fingers” (finger rafting). Nilas has a matte surface and is up to 10 cm
in thickness and may be subdivided into dark nilas and light nilas.
3) Young Ice: Ice in the transition stage between nilas and first-year ice, 10-30 cm in thickness. May
be subdivided into grey ice and grey-white ice.

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SEA ICE TYPES
4) First-year Ice: Sea ice of not more than one winter’s growth, developing from
young ice; 30 cm or greater. It may be subdivided into thin first-year ice -
sometimes referred to as white ice -, medium first-year ice and thick first-year
ice.
5) Old Ice: Sea ice which has survived at least one summer’s melt. Topographic
features generally are smoother than first-year ice. It maybe subdivided into
second-year ice and multiyear ice.

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SEA ICE FORM
▪ Ice can take on many forms, depending on external conditions and other physical considerations.
Except in sheltered waters, an even sheet of ice seldom forms immediately:
▪ The thickening slush breaks up into separate masses under wind and wave action, the masses
taking on a characteristic pancake form due to the fragments colliding with each other. The slush
layer dampens down the waves, and if freezing continues, the pancakes will adhere together,
forming a continuous sheet. Here are some of the more common forms of ice:
1) Pancake Ice: Predominantly circular pieces of ice 30 cm to 3 m in diameter, up to 10 cm in
thickness, with raised rims due to the pieces striking against one another. It may form on a slight
swell from grease ice, shuga or slush or as a result of the breaking of ice rind, nilas or, under
severe conditions of swell or waves, of grey ice. It also sometimes forms at some depth at an
interface between water bodies of different physical characteristics where it floats to the surface.
It may rapidly form over wide areas of water.

56
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
SEA ICE FORM
2) Brash Ice: Accumulation of floating ice made up of fragments not more than 2 m across, the
wreckage of other forms of ice.
3) Ice Cake: Any relatively flat piece of ice less than 20 m across.
4) Floe: Any relatively flat piece of ice 20 m or more across. Floes are subdivided according to
horizontal extent as follows:
a) Small: 20-100 m across
b) Medium: 100-500 m across
c) Big: 500-2,000 m across
d) Vast: 2-10 km across
e) Giant: Greater than 10 km across

57
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
OUTER LIMITS OF THE AREA IN WHICH ICEBERGS MAY BE
ENCOUNTERED IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC
▪ ICEBERG LOCATIONS
▪ Numerous and massive icebergs from Antarctic ice shelves
populate the Southern Ocean, which surrounds the Antarctic
continent. Sometimes these icebergs drift into the South
Pacific Ocean near New Zealand and into the South Atlantic
near the coast of South America.
▪ The Arctic Ocean has several iceberg sources, including the
ice shelves of the Canadian Arctic, the Norwegian Svalbard
archipelago, and numerous locations in the Russian Arctic.
▪ Finally, there are several glaciers, such as the Columbia
Glacier in Alaska, that calve icebergs that do not move very
far from their source.

58
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
▪ In most years, icebergs enter the North Atlantic

shipping lanes (red lines) during the spring and
early summer.
▪ Icebergs in Newfoundland: Most of the icebergs
that enter the North Atlantic shipping lanes come
from the tidewater glaciers of the west coast of
Greenland.
▪ Once an iceberg is calved from one of these
glaciers it completes a 1–3-year journey to arrive
in the area that the International Ice Patrol (IIP)
monitors

59
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
▪ Iceberg season for the North Atlantic:

▪ Across the Grand Banks, the most active months of the
iceberg season (from March to May) create the most problems
for shipping lanes across the North Atlantic.
▪ During a typical season, icebergs can migrate as far south as
39N across the Grand Banks. The farthest south an iceberg
has been spotted was in 1926 near 30-20N/62-32W,
approximately 150nm northeast of Bermuda.
▪ Vessels typically maintain at least 30 to 60 nautical miles safe
berth south of the limit of all known icebergs as issued by the
IIP, which usually means additional distance steamed for
trans-Atlantic vessels proceeding to Newfoundland, Nova
Scotia, and New England.

60
OCEANOGRAPHY 2

61
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
PRECAUTIONS WHILE ENTERING AND NAVIGATING WITHIN
ICE LIMITS
1) The route recommended by the Ice Superintendent through the appropriate reporting
system i.e. ECAREG or NORDREG, is based on the latest available information and
Masters are advised to adjust their course accordingly.
2) Do not enter ice if an alternative, although longer, open water route is available.
3) Enter the ice at low & speed to receive the initial impact: once into the pack.
4) Increase speed gradually to maintain headway and control of the ship, but do not let the
speed increase beyond the point at which she might suffer ice damage.
5) Be prepared to go Full Astern at any time.
6) Navigation in pack ice after dark should not be attempted without high-power
searchlights which can be controlled easily from the bridge.

62
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
PRECAUTIONS WHILE ENTERING AND NAVIGATING WITHIN
ICE LIMITS
7) If poor visibility precludes progress, heave to in the ice and keep the propeller turning slowly as
it is less susceptible to ice damage than if it were completely stopped, blocks of ice will also be
prevented from jamming between the blades and the hull.
8) Propellers and rudders are the most vulnerable parts of the ship; ships should go astern in ice
with extreme care, and always with the rudder amidships. If required to ram ice when brought to
a halt, ships should not go astern into unbroken ice, but should move astern only in the channel
previously cut by their own passage.
9) All forms of glacial ice (icebergs, Bergy bits, growlers) in the pack should be given a wide berth,
as they are current-driven whereas the pack is wind-driven. Large features of old ice may be
moving in a direction upwind or across the wind according.to the direction of the current.
10) Wherever possible, pressure ridges should be avoided and a passage through pack ice under
pressure should not be attempted. The ship may have to be stopped in the ice until the pressure
event is ended.

63
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
PRECAUTIONS YOU WILL TAKE WHILE NAVIGATING WITHIN
ICE LIMIT
1) Obtain latest ice information by all available means.

2) Mark ice limit on appropriate charts.
3) Plot all floating-icebergs position and their direction of drifting and speed.
4) Follow the route recommended by the Ice Superintendent via the Marine Communications and
Traffic Services Centre (MCTS). This route is based on the latest available information and
Masters are advised to adjust their course accordingly if changes are recommended during the
passage.
5) Extra lookouts must be posted and the bridge watch may be increased, depending on the
visibility.
6) Reduce speed to a minimum to receive the initial impact of the ice.
7) The vessel should be at right angles to the edge of the pack ice at the entry to avoid glancing
blows.

64
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
8) The point of entering the ice must be chosen carefully, preferably in an area of lower ice
concentration.
9) Correct Approach to Ice Field: Reduced Speed and Perpendicular to Edge.

10) The engine room personnel should be briefed fully as to the situation and what may be required
of them, as it may be necessary to go full astern at any time, and engine manoeuvres will be
frequent as speed is constantly adjusted.
11) The ship should be ballasted down to ice draft, if appropriate, or to such a draft that would offer
protection to a bulbous bow, rudder, or propeller (as applicable).

65
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
12) Once the ice is entered, the speed of the vessel should be increased slowly, according
to the prevailing ice conditions and the vulnerability of the ship.
13) If visibility decreases while the vessel is in the ice, speed should be reduced until the
vessel can be stopped within the distance of visibility, if in doubt, the vessel must stop
until the visibility improves.
14) If the vessel is stopped, the propeller(s) should be kept turning at low revolutions to
prevent ice from building up around the stem.
15) Follow open water patches and lighter ice areas even if initially it involves large
deviations of course.
16) Do not allow the speed to increase to dangerous levels when in leads or open pools
within an ice field, or when navigating open pack conditions.

66
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
17) Changes in the course will be necessary when the vessel is in ice. If possible course
changes should be carried out in an area of open water or in relatively light ice, as
turning in ice requires substantially more power than turning in water.
18) Avoid turning in heavy ice – seek lighter ice or open water pools.
19) If the vessel must make a sharp turn, the star manoeuvre will have to be performed

67
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
20) Backing in ice is a dangerous manoeuvre as it exposes the

most vulnerable parts of the ship, the rudder and propeller,
to the ice. It should only be attempted when absolutely
necessary and in any case the ship should never ram
astern.
21) Avoid backing in ice whenever possible. If you must move
astern, do so with extreme caution at dead slow.
22) Any ship that is not strengthened for operating in ice should
avoid floes that are rafted or ridged

68
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
23) The easiest way to avoid being beset Is to avoid areas of Ice under pressure. The most
common pressure situation occurs when open pack ice closes because of prevailing
winds, but it may also occur when tides, currents, or on-shore breezes blow ice onto
the shore, if proceeding along an open water lead between ice and shore, or ice in
motion and fast ice, watch for a change in the wind direction or tide as the lead can
close quickly.
❖ Pressure in Ice Field Closes Track behind Vessel

69
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
24) Abandoning ship in ice-covered waters is possible, if necessary, by landing lifeboats or

life rafts on the ice, if the ice is thick enough to take their weight. Vessels fitted with
quick-release drop-lifeboats without davits should never attempt to launch them into
ice, but should lower them gently to the ice-surface by using the recovery equipment in
reverse.
25) Flushing out ice with wash while the bow is fixed with a spring line.

70
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
26) Once the ship is secured, all efforts must be made to keep the ship alongside and not
to allow ice to force its way between the ship and the dock.
27) Keep the engine(s) on standby at river berths or strong tidal areas where ice is in
motion.
28) Mariners are advised not to rely solely on the radar for the detection of icebergs
because they may not appear as clearly defined targets.
29) The absence of sea clutter also may indicate that ice is present.
30) 3-centimetre radars (x-band) provide better ice details while 10-centimetre radars
(s-band) show the presence of ice and ridging at a greater distance
31) Marine radar provides an important tool for the detection of sea ice and icebergs.
However, do not rely solely on your radar in poor visibility as it is not certain that radar
will detect all types and sizes of ice and it will not differentiate old ice from first-year ice.
71
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
31) Marine radar provides an important tool for the detection of sea ice and icebergs.
However, do not rely solely on your radar in poor visibility as it is not certain that radar
will detect all types and sizes of ice and it will not differentiate old ice from first-year ice.
32) A very close pass from the iceberg should be avoided because the underwater portion
of the iceberg can protrude some distance away from the visible edge of the iceberg at
the sea surface.
33) Navigating Around an Iceberg and Bergy Bits

72
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
ICE LIMIT
34) Growlers are almost impossible to detect by radar. They pose an immense threat to ships.
Constant visual and radar monitoring must be maintained in any area where growlers are
expected.
35) Do not try to force your way thru the ice.
36) Change over to diesel oil prior entering the ice.
37) Full rudder is used in emergency only. Violent rudder movement may swing the stem into ice
and damage the propeller.
38) On deck, all the pipelines are drained and isolated.
39) Keep damage control gear ready – cement, collision mats, etc
40) Check heating systems of machinery and accommodation regularly.
41) Avoid anchoring in ice flow. If unavoidable, keep engine ready for immediate use.
42) The ship stopped in ice inshore, must always point seaward.
73
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
SAFELY NAVIGATING SHIPS AWAY FROM ICEBERGS:
❖ Vessels typically maintain at least 30 to 60 nautical miles safe berth

south of the iceberg limit issued by the IIP. This means added
distance and extra fuel consumed.
❖ During the peak of iceberg season, vessels must navigate south of
the typical shortest routes, passing south of the icebergs, which
typically reach as far south as 39N.
❖ The added distance means added cost to owners or charterers due to
additional steaming time and more bunkers consumed, though this is
a small price to pay compared to striking an iceberg and severely
damaging or sinking the vessel.

74
OCEANOGRAPHY 2
END OF LESSON
GOODLUCK
GOD BLESS
75
OCEANOGRAPHY 2

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MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY OF

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B. BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY & OCEANOGRAPHY 2

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

▪ An Ice shelf has the following distinguishing features:

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

FAST ICE PACK ICE

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &

INSTRUCTOR: 2/M EDILBERT B.BRIONES, MME METEOROLOGY &