Jökull - 01.12.1969, Qupperneq 77

TABLE 1
Mean winter winds east of Greenland in degrees true and knots geostrophic.
Region N Region M Region S
1956-1961 ... 060 - 13 045-11 065 - 12
1962-1967 . .. 040 - 13 040 - 11 060 - 10
TABLE 2
Mean geostrophic wind component in knots ; across and along the average ice edge east
Greenland for the years 1956 through 1967
Region N Region M Region L S
SE NE SE NE SE NE
January 4.8 12.2 0.5 12.4 1.2 10.8
February 3.0 11.1 - 1.2 9.8 0.7 8.3
March 4.2 14.1 0.2 10.9 3.8 11.4
April 5.5 8.4 2.2 9.1 2.7 10.4
May 2.6 5.1 1.3 5.2 3.0 6.1
June 0.4 2.6 0.1 3.0 1.9 3.8
J«iy 0.0 1.6 -0.9 2.4 0.8 2.0
August 2.1 2.3 2.3 4.8 0.6 5.3
September 2.1 5.0 1.3 5.0 2.4 5.2
October 5.2 9.1 1.5 8.8 3.5 9.8
November 5.4 10.1 0.0 10.5 2.3 9.9
December 7.2 12.3 2.5 13.3 2.6 13.3
winter temperature of Iceland has lowered con-
siderably these latest years. Comparison of the
mean winds for the months October through
March for the period 1956—1961 to the ones
in 1962—1967 shows a tendency towards rnore
northerly wind direction. The difference ap-
pears as a 2i/ó knots decrease in the SE wind
component for all three regions. Tlie differ-
ence is greatest farthest north. See Table 1.
Besides the change of direction the wind
speed in region S has decreased, indicating a
recess in the Iceland low. The change of wind
direction in region N is bound to result in
strengthening of the East Greenland Current
and also an increase in ice drift south through
the strait between Northeast Greenland and
Svalbard. Farther south the wind change makes
it. easier for the ice belt to broaden, and the
filling of the Iceland low results in retarda-
tion of the ice flow towards the southwest
between NW Iceland and Greenland. AIl these
factors relating to wind changes east of Green-
land are probably the prime factors causing
the increase of ice in Icelandic waters in the
latest years.
'ITIE ICE IN 1965
The first months of the winter 1964—1965
nobody even thought of ice in Icelandic waters.
However, in region N the amount of clrift ice
was greater than usual in October ancl Novem-
ber. Similar increase appeared about a month
later in region M, as can be seen in Fig. 3.
And near Jan Mayen some ice was observed
in November. In region S the ice edge was 20
to 40 miles nearer the Greenland coast than
normally until the end of January. At that
time a maximum that had appeared in region
M in December had disappeared and a min-
imum come in stead. The reason for this
change is obviously the fact that southeasterly
wind component had prevailed most of Janu-
ary as seen in Fig. 6.
JÖKULL 19. ÁR 73