NASA Operation IceBridge - Sjekk av is og isbreers utvikling

The NASA P-3 being prepared for a Beaufort Sea survey flight on a chilly morning in Fairbanks, Alaska. Credit: NASA/M. Studinger
Last week, IceBridge scientists carried out what are considered the most important sea ice flights of the Arctic campaign: crossing the Arctic Basin from Greenland to Alaska. This year's Arctic Basin flights came earlier than previous years thanks to the weather. "Every year, blizzards with wind speeds of over 100 miles per hour and white out conditions lock us down for a few days," said Michael Studinger, IceBridge project scientist.

On March 14, the P-3 made the long flight from Thule, Greenland to Fairbanks, Alaska, gathering sea ice data along the way. IceBridge scientists then spent the next few days flying survey missions over ice in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas. "This is a new area for IceBridge and an important data set to monitor changes in the Arctic environment," Studinger said.

With three additional days' worth of sea ice data, the P-3 made its return flight to Thule early on March 19. In addition to conducting one more sea ice flight than originally expected, the IceBridge team also gained a flight day compared to what they would have had in Thule due to weekend closures there. After a no-fly day for aircraft and instrument maintenance, scientists and crew resumed sea ice flights out of Thule on March 21.

Read more about the Arctic Basin sea ice surveys here: http://blogs.nasa.gov/cm/blog/icebridge/posts/post_1332009187674.html