at the extreme position of SS'TjS' N., 67^24' W., on 14 July. Bergs 

 drifted up Frobisher Bay with a number reaching the vicinity of 

 Gabriel Island. Only an occasional berg, however, was sighted 

 beyond the northern tip of Chase Island (63°02' N.). 



Comparing the 1944 season with that of 1943 the ice appeared 

 less severe over the entire area in 1944. The ice cleared out of 

 Ungava and Frobisher Bays at least a week earlier than in the pre- 

 ceding year. In Hudson Bay pack had persisted across the steamer 

 track near Churchill until the latter part of August 1943, but was 

 entirely gone by the middle of August in 1944. Indications point 

 toward less ice formed in the entire area during the winter of 

 1943-44 than the winter of 1942-43. 



GREENLAND AREA 



The Greenland area embraces coastal and offshore waters off 

 both the east and west coasts of Greenland, including the Green- 

 land Sea, waters adjacent to Iceland, Denmark Strait, and the 

 eastern half of Davis Strait. The reports of ice sightings for this 

 area are given in the "Table of Ice Reports, Greenland Area." 

 Figure 20 to 26 respectively show for the months of February to 

 August inclusive the extreme limits of field ice reported, and the 

 estimated average limits of the main field of heavy Arctic pack 

 ice, commonly called "storis" in the Greenland area. Figure 27 

 shows the position of the edge of the main ice field off the east 

 coast at various times from July through October, 



More than an average amount of storis was present in the fjord 

 region of east Greenland north of the 70th parallel in the late 

 summer of 1943. The southern edge of this ice pushed south along 

 the coast to reach the vicinity of Prince Christian Sound near 

 the 60th parallel by 2 December. A few patches drifted past 

 Cape Farewell and up the west coast to the vicinity of 60° 20' N., 

 47°30' W., by the 15th. From January through March the ex- 

 tremity of the main pack was in the general vicinity of Cape Fare- 

 well. Although an occasional patch drifted along the west coast 

 as far as Cape Thorvaldsen, 60°40' N., this ice was short lived and 

 of little hindrance to navigation. 



Few sightings from along the Greenland east coast were re- 

 ported during the winter months but it appears that the major 

 ice movement of the period was toward the east in the region north 

 of Iceland. On 21 February the southeast boundary of the Arctic 

 ice was within 50 miles of the northwestern tip of Iceland and 

 extended to Jan Mayen Island. By the end of the month the outer 

 fringes of the pack were only a few miles off the Iceland coast near 

 North Cape. The passage around the north coast of Iceland was 

 continuously blocked from 6 March to 21 March and at times until 

 9 April. On one occasion the ice extended to the Iceland west coast 



59 



