Figure 18. Mean sea-ice extent for concentrations of 7/10ths and greater for July through September

Figure 17. Seasonal extent of the sea-ice edge

The Barents Sea

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Average Ice Edge (month)

Figure 18. Mean sea-ice extent for concentrations of 7/10ths and greater for July through September.

(Translated from RSMOT, in prep.)

ized by near-freezing air temperatures that pro-

shelf lying at relatively shallow depth over vast

duce little ice growth or decay. Shipping activity

areas. For example, the average depth of the entire

routinely occurs throughout the melt and the au-

East Siberian and Chukchi Seas is only 58 m and

tumn interphase. The Russians would like to ex-

88 m, respectively (streng 1991). Tidal changes

tend the shipping season into the freeze period

range from 5 to 7 m in the Laptev Sea, from 3 to 4

and the spring interphase. Table 7 provides a sum-

m in the East Siberian Sea, and are no more than 2

mary of the environmental conditions encountered

to 2.5 m in the Kara Sea (Buzuev 1991). The limit-

in the Eurasian seas of the Northern Sea Route.

ing depths for navigation are those found in the

As previously mentioned, the bathymetry of the

various straits. Most exceed 20 m, except the

Russian Arctic is characterized by the continental

Sannikova and Dmitriya Lapteva straits located

Table 7. Summary of environmental conditions of the Eurasian seas along the Northern Sea Route

(from Barnett 1991).

Mean air temp. (C)

Average date of

Summer ice cover

relative to winter max.

extent (% of area)

Average date of

complete freeze-up

Average date of

min. ice extent

Western Governors University

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