Research Document - 1999/051

Overview of Meteorological and Sea Ice Conditions off Eastern Canada during 1998

By K. F. Drinkwater, R.G. Pettipas and W. M. Petrie

Abstract

A review of meteorological and sea ice conditions off eastern Canada during 1998 is presented. Annual mean air temperatures throughout the northwest Atlantic warmed relative to 1997 and were warmer than the long-term normal by between 0.4° to 1.5° C. The maximum air temperature anomaly, and largest increase relative to 1997, was in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Seasonally, air temperatures in most areas of the northwest Atlantic were above normal in at least 10 out of the 12 months of 1998. The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index for 1998 was slightly above normal, reversing the trend of below normal values of the previous two years. There was, however, only a slight increase in the index relative to 1997 but these lay well above the 1996 index. This indicates that the large-scale atmospheric circulation, including the Icelandic Low, has been intensifying relative to events in 1996. The sea ice on the southern Labrador and Newfoundland shelves generally appeared late and left early, resulting in a shorter duration of ice than usual. The ice coverage in these areas during 1998 was less than in 1997 and lower than average. The number of icebergs reaching the Grand Banks in 1998 was 1384, which represents a 36% increase over the 1997 numbers. This large number of bergs in 1998 was unexpected given the reduced sea-ice extent and the relatively warm wintertime air temperatures. Still, it remained below the large number of icebergs reported in the early 1990s. In the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the sea-ice appeared late and disappeared early, resulting in a lower than normal duration. Little to no ice reached the Scotian Shelf proper and the areal coverage of ice in the Sydney Bight area off eastern Cape Breton was much less than normal.

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