c 1999 



ErninornTEnt / Enviromement Canada 



ANALYSE mCEBERG ANALYSIS 



rOR/PajRIJOOUTCOBJUL/JU 1999 

 ISSLH5 fff Tl-E OVWOAN ICE SSS/ICF 

 IN OTTAWA / aiSfc PAR LE SSMCE 

 CANAQEN DES GLACES A OHAWA 



ICEBERGS PAR DB3RE CARRE 

 ICEBERG UMT/ UMTE OES ICEBERGS 

 SEA ICE UMT /UMTl DES GLACES 



Figure 17. Iceberg distirbution on July 2, 1999 from the iceberg analysis issued by the 

 Canadian Ice Service. There were 3165 icebergs in the CIS model on this date. 



production at the various glaciers and 

 deterioration processes in Baffin Bay that 

 might destroy them before getting very far 

 south. The second includes the 

 mechanisms that contribute to iceberg 

 destruction in east Newfoundland waters, 

 such as the duration and areal extent of 

 the sea ice cover, air and sea surface 

 temperature, and storm tracks. The final 

 category includes those factors relating to 

 the movement of icebergs once they reach 

 southern Labrador and east Newfoundland 

 waters, primarily the ocean currents in the 

 region, and to a lesser extent, winds. 



During the 1999 ice year there was 

 an ample supply of glacial ice to the 

 southern Labrador coast and east 

 Newfoundland waters. From mid-April 

 through July many hundreds of icebergs 

 surrounded the northern peninsula of 

 Newfoundland. Although the icebergs 

 eventually deteriorated in place, the 



deterioration process was a lengthy one, 

 taking over two months, and few icebergs 

 escaped to the south during it. 



While icebergs were plentiful, the 

 sea ice season was light compared with 

 the median ice limits provided by Cote 

 (1989). The sea ice reached its farthest 

 southern extent in very early March, about 

 two weeks earlier than usual. At its 

 extreme, the areal extent was substantially 

 less than normal, never reaching below 

 48°N latitude (the northern tip of the Avalon 

 Peninsula). Its easterly extent was also 

 much less than normal, and by mid-April 

 there was very little sea ice east of 55°W 

 longitude. 



Thus, the dominant factor in 1999 

 was the ocean currents that drove the 

 many icebergs that were present into the 

 bight of Newfoundland and the Gulf of St. 

 Lawrence, where they became immobilized 

 and deteriorated in place. 



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