exposed to the influence of low air temperatures, thus freezing into 

 sheets of ice. At flood tide these sheets rise, break into smaller 

 fragments, and are driven against the shore where they are piled hap- 

 hazardly,, Distortions in the bottom relief, tides, and, to a lesser 

 extent, normal dynamic currents cause local rip currents which, in 

 some local areas of bays and fjords, either prevent the formation of 

 ice or cause the ice to be thin and treacherous. Fast ice which forms 

 in some of the protected coastal indentations is fractured and open 

 cracks appear at spring tides. The effect of tides on the ice of these 

 waters generally is confined to limited areas and will be considered in 

 the appropriate sections of this study. 



Davis Strait, the southern egress of Baffin Bay, plays a distinct 

 role in the cyclic history of the ice generated in these waters. Pres- 

 sure systems moving into and across this area often cause great havoc to 

 the ice. Winds with accompanying sea and swell resulting from the passage 

 of low pressure systems across the Labrador Sea pound against the southern 

 boundaries of the pack, compact it, break up its peripheral ice, and narrow 

 the drift belt westward. Again,, strong winds from the north exert immense 

 pressure on the pack, disrupt it, and expose large areas of open water to 

 the renewal of ice formation. When this occurs, Davis Strait becomes a 

 great flushing estuary through which discharges increasing masses of broken 

 ice. This changes the area of distribution and rapidly broadens the drift 

 pack to the south. 



It was not Intended that this study should consider the causes and 

 effects of sea-ice growth and formation. To do this would deviate from 

 the purpose ajid function. Occasionally in this report, reference is 

 directed toward the effect of some of the meteorological variables on 

 the behavior and physical characteristics of ice. This reference, then, 

 would contribute in small measure to the promotion of a more factual ap- 

 praisal of ice conditions and provide means for a more ready evaluation 

 of these conditions in terms of emergency descent and safe landing of air- 

 craft. 



This study did not intend to consider the behavior of ice, nor to its 

 cause and effect, within any specific area. However, in order to clarify 

 particular aspects of local ice conditions it was desirable to do so. To 

 have done otherwise would have involved considerations of a nature dissonant 

 with the purpose of this study. 



Ice in Baffin Bay and Davis Strait does not form uniformly. Actually, 

 it can be considered not onj.y a function of oceanographic and meteorological 

 variables, but also of latitude. Sea ice begins to form first in the upper- 

 most regions of Baffin Bay and spreads slowly southward into the waters of 

 Davis Strait. The freezing process continues southward, but takes place 

 first in the west and som*what later in the east. As a result, coastal 

 waters in the north are frozen over with a fairly thick layer of ice, while 

 those to the south remain open and free of ice. Also, owing to the many 

 factors that influence its formation and distribution, ice is not uniformly 



