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Row A
Total concentration: the ice coverage of an area determined by its concentration and expressed in tenth (in this example, 9/10)
Row B
Partial concentration: the break-down of the total ice coverage expressed in tenths and graded by thickness. The thickest starting from the left and in this example, 1/10 is the thickest.
Row C
Stage of development: the type of ice in each of the grades, determined by its age, that is 1/10 is medium first-year ice (1.), 6/10 is grey-white ice (5) and 2/10 is new ice (1). Trace of old ice is represented on the lefthand side (outside the egg) by the number 7.
Row D
Floe Size: the form of the ice determined by its floe size for each section. In this example, big floes (5) for medium first-year ice (1.); small floes (3) for grey-white ice (5); and undetermined, unknown or no form floes (x) for new ice (1).
Note: When an ice type has a dot (.) every other value to the left of it is also considered to have a dot.
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| E | Trace of ice thicker/older then Sa |
| F | Thickest |
| G | Second thickest |
| H | Third thickest |
| I | Additional groups |
Sea Ice Symbols
 | Open Water |  | Ice Free |
 | Bergy Water |  | Fast Ice |
Stage of Development (SoSaSbScSdSe)
| Description | Thickness | Code |
|---|---|---|
| New Ice | < 10 cm | 1 |
| Nilas;Ice Rind | < 10 cm | 2 |
| Young Ice | 10-30 cm | 3 |
| Grey Ice | 10-15 cm | 4 |
| Grey-white Ice | 15-30 cm | 5 |
| First-year Ice | >= 30 cm | 6 |
| Thin First-year Ice | 30-70 cm | 7 |
| Medium First-year Ice | 70-120 cm | 1. |
| Thick First-year Ice | > 120 cm | 4. |
| Old Ice | 7. | |
| Second-year | 8. | |
| Multi-year | 9. | |
| Ice of Land Origin |  |
|
| Undetermined/Unknown | X |
Floe Size (FaFbFc)
| Description | Width | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Pancake ice | 0 | |
| Small ice cake; brash ice | < 2m | 1 |
| Ice cake | 2 - 20m | 2 |
| Small floe | 20 – 100m | 3 |
| Medium floe | 100 – 500m | 4 |
| Big floe | 500 – 2000m | 5 |
| Vast floe | 2 – 10 km | 6 |
| Giant floe | > 10 km | 7 |
| Fast Ice | 8 | |
| Icebergs* | 9 | |
| Undetermined or unknown | X | |
| Ice in strips |  |
*Ice of land origin
Concentration of Ice
 | < 1/10 | Open Water |
 | 1-3/10 | Very open drift |
 | 4-6/10 | Open drift |
 | 7-8/10 | Close pack |
 | 9/10 | Very close pack |
 | 9+/10 | Very close pack |
 | 10/10 | Compact/Consolidated ice |
WMO Concentration Colour Code - Sea Ice
| Colour* | Description |
|---|---|
 |
Ice Free |
 |
< 1 Tenth Ice |
 |
1-3 Tenths Ice |
 |
4-6 Tenths Ice |
 |
7-8 Tenths Ice |
 |
9-10 Tenths Ice |
 |
Fast Ice of Unspecified Stage of Development |
 |
Undefined Ice |
| Optional | |
 |
7 Tenths New Ice |
 |
9+-10 Tenths Nilas, Grey Ice ** |
| No Information | Areas for which no information is known are identified accordingly. |
* Colour is based on total ice concentration.
** The optional colour indicating 9+-10 tenths of nilas or grey ice indicates level ice, mainly on leads; it is not used for ice broken into brash or ice cakes or for concentrations less than 9+ tenths.
WMO Stage of Development Colour Code - Sea Ice
| Colour | Description | Thickness |
|---|---|---|
|
Ice Free | |
|
Ice of Unspecified Stage of Development (open water) | |
 |
New Ice | < 10 cm |
 |
Grey Ice | 10-15 cm |
 |
Grey-White Ice | 15-30 cm |
|
First-Year Ice | >= 30 cm |
 |
Thin First-Year Ice | 30-70 cm |
 |
Medium First-Year Ice | 70-120 cm |
 |
Thick First-Year Ice | 120 cm > |
 |
Old Ice | |
|
Second-Year Ice | |
|
Multi-Year Ice | |
|
Fast Ice of Unspecified Stage of Development | |
|
Undefined Ice | |
 |
Drifting Ice of Land Origin (Icebergs) | |
| No Information |
Areas for which no information is known are identified accordingly. | |
Colour is based on stage of development of predominant ice.
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Overview |
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Overview |
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Sea Ice Cycle |
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Ice Dynamics |
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Ice Strength |
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Types and Forms |
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Canadian Waters |
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Glossaries |
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Overview |
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Migration |
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Movement |
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Melting |
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Glossary |
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Sea Ice (PDF) |
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Sea Ice (HTML) |
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Lake Ice (PDF) |
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Lake Ice (HTML) |
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Icebergs (PDF) |
