2011 Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook (SIWO): First Report Now Available
Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH)
For more information, please go to:
http://www.arcus.org/search/siwo
Or contact:
Kristina Creek, SEARCH Project Office, ARCUS
Email: creek [at] arcus.org
Helen Wiggins, SEARCH Project Office, ARCUS
Email: helen [at] arcus.org
The first report of the 2011 Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook (SIWO) is now
available! To access the report and for more information, go to the SIWO
website at: http://www.arcus.org/search/siwo.
The Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook, an activity of the Study of
Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH) Sea Ice Outlook
(http://www.arcus.org/search/seaiceoutlook/index.php), is a resource for
Alaska Native subsistence hunters, coastal communities, and others
interested in sea ice and walrus.
The SIWO will be updated weekly with information on sea ice conditions
relevant to walrus in the Northern Bering Sea and southern Chukchi Sea
regions of Alaska. SIWO updates will be released every Friday.
SIWO reports include:
- An assessment of current ice conditions relevant to distribution
and access of walrus;
- A 10-day outlook of wind conditions;
- Up-to-date satellite imagery for the Bering Strait and St.
Lawrence Island, which are two regions of interest to coastal
communities engaging in the walrus hunt;
- Written observations of ice development from Alaska Native
hunters, sea-ice experts, or researchers; and
- Additional data and resources on ice conditions.
This collaboration includes weather and ice forecasters; climate
scientists and sea-ice researchers at NOAA, the National Weather
Service, and the University of Alaska; and the Arctic Research
Consortium of the U.S. (ARCUS, with funding from the National Science
Foundation's Division of Arctic Sciences), who are teaming up with
Alaska Native sea-ice experts and the Eskimo Walrus Commission.
Updates and observations may be added throughout the week, as they are
received. If you are a local hunter, expert, or a scientist with
observations on the development of sea ice or any other aspect of walrus
and sea ice, please send your comments to Kristina Creek
(creek [at] arcus.org); your comments will be included on the SIWO webpage.
A Facebook page for the Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook will be launched
early this season. The ARCUS office will send out an announcement when
it is available. Preparations are also underway for launching the
regional and pan-arctic Sea Ice Outlook in May.
To access the report and for more information, go to the SIWO website at:
http://www.arcus.org/search/siwo.
Or contact:
Kristina Creek, SEARCH Project Office, ARCUS
Email: creek [at] arcus.org
Helen Wiggins, SEARCH Project Office, ARCUS
Email: helen [at] arcus.org