Sea Ice Flashcards
What are ice floes?
Large masses of ice found in arctic regions that form in open water and are a form of sea ice.
Ice floes are integral to the Arctic ecosystem and can vary in size.
Define freeboard in the context of sea ice.
The height of floating ice above the sea surface.
Freeboard is an important measure for understanding the stability and buoyancy of ice.
What is draft in relation to sea ice?
The thickness of sea ice extending below the water level.
Draft, along with freeboard, helps determine total sea ice thickness.
How are draft and freeboard related?
They comprise total sea ice thickness.
The relationship between draft and freeboard is crucial for understanding ice dynamics.
What causes the formation of a pressure ridge?
When a glacier follows gravity, advancing down the valley and pushes on the frozen river ice.
The force from the glacier can cause significant deformation in the river ice.
What happens to river ice when a pressure ridge forms?
The river ice bends, breaks, and grows upwards, forming cracks and crevasses.
This upward growth can reach heights of 15-20 feet.
What is frazil ice?
Ice that forms in supercooled water due to surface water losing heat to cooler air above.
Frazil ice is often a precursor to other ice formations.
Describe pancake ice.
Ice formed among grease ice, which is a thin layer of ice on agitated water, often including frazil ice and slush.
Pancake ice appears as circular shapes and can vary in size.
What is grease ice?
A thin layer of ice that gathers on the surface of agitated water.
Grease ice can be a precursor to pancake ice formation.
Fill in the blank: Frazil ice forms in _______ water.
supercooled
Supercooled conditions are critical for the formation of frazil ice.
True or False: Pancake ice forms when the rinds of grease ice break up.
True
The breaking up of grease ice is a key process in the formation of pancake ice.
