Research Document - 2000/059

Overview of meteorological and sea ice conditions off eastern Canada during 1999.

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

Abstract

A review of meteorological and sea ice conditions off eastern Canada during 1999 is presented. Annual mean air temperatures throughout most of the northwest Atlantic warmed relative to 1998 setting record high values in the region from southern Labrador to Cape Cod. The maximum air temperature anomalies and the largest increases relative to 1998 were in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, on the Scotian Shelf and over eastern Newfoundland. Seasonally, air temperatures in most areas of the northwest Atlantic were above normal in 10 out of the 12 months of 1999. The only exception to the warm air temperatures was on the West Greenland side of the Labrador Sea. The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index for 1999 was well above normal, reversing the trend of below normal and near normal values of the previous three years. This indicates that the large-scale atmospheric circulation, including the Icelandic Low and the Azores High, intensified in 1999. The NAO index in 1999 was similar to levels obtained in the cold period of the early 1990s. Sea ice on the southern Labrador and Newfoundland shelves generally appeared on schedule but left early, resulting in a shorter duration of ice than usual. The ice coverage in these areas during 1999 was lower than average but similar to 1998. The number of icebergs reaching the Grand Banks in 1999 was only 22, well down from the 1384 icebergs observed in 1998. The small number of bergs in 1999 is consistent with the reduced ice cover later in the season and the generally warmer-than-normal air temperatures. In the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the sea ice also appeared on schedule and although there was a tendency to disappear earlier-than-normal, there were still significant portions of the Gulf where the date of last presence was later than usual. 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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