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Ice Forecast
Issued by NWS Anchorage, AK
Issued by NWS Anchorage, AK
676 FZAK80 PAFC 032243 ICEAFC Sea Ice Forecast for Western and Arctic Alaskan Coastal Waters National Weather Service - Alaska Sea Ice Program 242 PM AKDT Wednesday 3 July 2024 FORECAST VALID...Monday 8 July 2024 ANALYSIS CONFIDENCE...High to moderate. SYNOPSIS...A low in the eastern Beaufort Sea will continue to gradually move east toward the Canadian Archipelago through Saturday. Another low will move northeast from the Bering Strait region to the southern Beaufort Sea late Friday through Sunday, then a broad low will move south from the High Arctic on Monday. The main ice edge extends from near Espenberg to 69 4N 167 30W to 68 34N 170 50W to 66 6N 169 38W. The ice edge is open water. From land-based points in Alaska, the main ice edge extends from Espenberg to 32 nm northwest of Cape Lisburne to 95 nm west of Point Hope to 25 nm northwest of Diomede. The ice edge is open water. -BEAUFORT SEA- PKZ505-Central US Arctic Offshore- PKZ510-Eastern US Arctic Offshore- PKZ813-Point Franklin to Cape Halkett out to 15 nm- PKZ814-Cape Halkett to Flaxman Island out to 15 nm- PKZ815-Flaxman Island to Demarcation Point out to 15 nm- PKZ860-Cape Halkett to Flaxman Island from 15 nm to 80 nm- PKZ861-Flaxman Island to Demarcation Point from 15 nm to 75 nm- Ice covered. FORECAST FOR THE BEAUFORT SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is high. Westerly winds will persist through Friday, then winds will be light and variable across the southern Beaufort Sea Saturday through Monday. Expect ice to drift eastward through Friday on the order of 5-10 nm/day, then sea ice will drift with local tides and currents through Monday. Near shore ice will continue to degrade from the shore. Expect the melt area from the Mackenzie River Delta to continue to make westward progress through the forecast period. -CHUKCHI SEA- PKZ500-Western US Arctic Offshore- PKZ505-Central US Arctic Offshore- PKZ807-Wales to Cape Espenberg out to 15 nm- PKZ808-Cape Espenberg to Motherwood Point out to 10 nm- PKZ809-Motherwood Point to Cape Krusenstern out to 10 nm- PKZ810-Cape Krusenstern to Cape Thompson out to 15 nm- PKZ811-Cape Thompson to Cape Beaufort out to 15 nm- PKZ812-Cape Beaufort to Point Franklin out to 15 nm- PKZ813-Point Franklin to Cape Halkett out to 15 nm- PKZ855-Kotzebue Sound greater than 10 nm- PKZ856-Wales to Cape Thompson greater than 15 nm- PKZ857-Cape Thompson to Cape Beaufort from 15 to 85 nm- PKZ858-Cape Beaufort to Point Franklin from 15 to 85 nm- Ice covered. FORECAST FOR THE CHUKCHI SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is moderate. Generally southerly winds will hasten melt in the southern Chukchi Sea through Friday, then winds will shift to northerly through the weekend. A band of remaining pack ice will likely remain along the coast between Cape Krusenstern and Point Hope, but as northerly winds develop that band of ice will likely move away from the coastline. The ice edge will likely move to the north up to 20 nm through Friday, then move back to the south up to 20 nm Saturday through Monday. -BERING SEA- PKZ817-North side of Saint Lawrence Island out to 15 nm- FORECAST FOR THE BERING SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...A small area of brash ice remains northeast of Saint Lawrence Island, which will melt completely by the weekend. Otherwise, Alaska waters of the Bering Sea are ice free. && Schreck