sea ice
Icelandic Coast Guard. Sea ice north of Iceland, June 21, 2023.
The Coast Guard flight yesterday discovered plenty of sea ice unusually close to Iceland's northern coastline, which could pose a risk to seafarers. At the same time, parts of the North Atlantic Ocean are warmer than ever before. RÚV reported first.

"We have some very scattered ice coming up to the shore some eight to nine nautical miles from Hornstrandir [nature reserve in the Westfjords], which is closer than we've been seeing lately," sea ice expert Ingibjörg Jónsdóttir, who was on the flight yesterday, stated. Thicker sea ice was also present further out to sea. Although the ice is thin in many places, it could be dangerous for smaller ships, according to Ingibjörg.


Comment: Hornstrandir on a map:

Hornstrandir
Hornstrandir

While the sea of Iceland's north coast is currently cold, south of the island it has reached higher temperatures than ever before.

The average temperature in the North Atlantic Ocean has never measured higher since record-taking began, breaking records for the past three months in a row. The ocean's average temperature is just over one degree hotter than the average over the past two decades. In some areas, it is up to 4 degrees Celsius hotter than is considered normal.


Comment: And that's possibly because of heating coming from below: 'Unheard of' marine heatwave off UK and Irish coasts poses serious threat


Halldór Björnsson, Coordinator of Atmospheric Research at the Icelandic Met Office, says there is no doubt about the reason for this warming. "The basic reason is that all the world's oceans are much warmer than they were, and that is simply the result of global warming," he stated.