The 2014-15 Freeze-Up Study is intended to build upon knowledge and expand the database acquired during the past five years and is designed to address five specific objectives:
1. Describe the ice conditions that evolve during the freeze-up and early winter seasons, including the development of the landfast ice zone and early shear zone;
2. Locate and map features of potential importance for offshore exploration and production activities, including ice movement lines, substantial leads (linear openings in the sea ice) and polynyas (areal openings in the sea ice), first-year ridges and rubble fields, and multiyear floes;
3. Locate and map ice pile-ups on natural shorelines and man-made structures, and estimate the dimensions associated with such features;
4. Correlate significant changes in the ice canopy with the corresponding meteorological conditions; and
5. Using the data acquired since 2009-10, characterize present-day freeze-up processes and compare them with those documented in the 1980s.
Completed 12/31/2015. Final Report cannot be posted at this time due to its "proprietary in nature" and will be posted within 5 years.