FZAK80 PAFC 042308 ICEAFC Sea Ice Forecast for Western and Arctic Alaskan Coastal Waters National Weather Service - Alaska Sea Ice Program 207 PM AKST Wednesday 4 March 2026 FORECAST VALID…Monday 9 March 2026 ANALYSIS CONFIDENCE…Moderate to high. SYNOPSIS…A low over the North Pacific will move northeast over the Gulf coast on Friday and then slowly weaken there through Monday. High pressure will spread from western Russia and the North Pacific across the Bering Sea through Monday. High pressure will replace low pressure from west to east across the Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea through Monday. -BEAUFORT SEA- PKZ505-Central US Arctic Offshore- PKZ510-Eastern US Arctic Offshore- PKZ813-Point Franklin to Cape Halkett out to 15 nm- PKZ814-Cape Halkett to Flaxman Island out to 15 nm- PKZ815-Flaxman Island to Demarcation Point out to 15 nm- PKZ859-Point Franklin to Cape Halkett from 45 to 80 nm- PKZ860-Cape Halkett to Flaxman Island from 45 to 80 nm- Ice covered. FORECAST FOR THE BEAUFORT SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is high. Light westerly to northwesterly winds linger through Saturday. Then, winds shift southwesterly from Sunday through Monday. Break-off of shorefast ice is not expected, however small polynyas may form in between the shorefast ice and mobile pack ice. Otherwise, pack ice will move very little or not at all through the week. -CHUKCHI SEA- PKZ500-Western US Arctic Offshore- PKZ505-Central US Arctic Offshore- PKZ807-Wales to Cape Espenberg out to 15 nm- PKZ808-Cape Espenberg to Motherwood Point out to 10 nm- PKZ809-Motherwood Point to Cape Krusenstern out to 10 nm- PKZ810-Cape Krusenstern to Cape Thompson out to 15 nm- PKZ811-Cape Thompson to Cape Beaufort out to 15 nm- PKZ812-Cape Beaufort to Point Franklin out to 15 nm- PKZ813-Point Franklin to Cape Halkett out to 15 nm- PKZ855-Kotzebue Sound greater than 10 nm- PKZ856-Wales to Cape Thompson greater than 15 nm- PKZ857-Cape Thompson to Cape Beaufort from 15 to 85 nm- PKZ858-Cape Beaufort to Point Franklin from 15 to 85 nm- PKZ859-Point Franklin to Cape Halkett from 15 to 75 nm- Ice covered. FORECAST FOR THE CHUKCHI SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is high. Northerly winds continue through Saturday before shifting northwesterly on Sunday and then westerly on Monday. Shorefast ice is not expected to break-off anywhere along the Alaska coastline during this time period. Pack ice will move very little through the week. -BERING SEA- PKZ763-Kuskokwim Delta and Etolin Strait out to 15 nm- PKZ765-North and West of Nunivak Island PKZ801-Etolin Strait to Dall Point out to 15 nm- PKZ802-Dall Point to Kwikpak Pass out to 15 nm- PKZ803-Kwikpak Pass to Cape Stephens out to 15 nm- PKZ804-Cape Stephens to Moses Point out to 15 nm- PKZ805-Moses Point to Sledge Island out to 15 nm- PKZ806-Sledge Island to Wales out to 15 nm- PKZ850-Etolin Strait to Kwemeluk Pass from 15 to 90 nm- PKZ852-Norton Sound greater than 15 nm- PKZ853-Kwemeluk Pass to Kwikpak Pass from 15 to 90 nm- Ice covered. PKZ760-Bristol Bay greater than 15 nm- PKZ761-Bristol Bay from Port Heiden to Cape Chichagof out to 15 nm- PKZ762-Bristol Bay from Cape Chichagof to Cape Pierce out to 15 nm- PKZ764-Kuskokwim Delta from 15 to 80 nm- PKZ767-Saint Matthew Island Waters- PKZ816-South Side of Saint Lawrence Island out to 15 nm- PKZ817-North Side of Saint Lawrence Island out to 15 nm- PKZ851-Southwest of Saint Lawrence Island from 15 to 100 nm- PKZ854-Sledge Island to Wales greater than 15 nm- The main ice edge in the Bering Sea extends from near 55 57'N 161 34'W to 56 59'N 160 16'W to 57 45'N 161 27'W to 56 22'N 163 45'W to 57 13'N 168 39'W to 56 60'N 170 13'W to 57 56'N 172 46'W to 59 14'N 173 52'W to 61 7'N 178 7'W. The ice edge is new close pack ice. From land-based points in Alaska, the main ice edge in the Bering Sea extends from 35 nm southwest of Port Moller to 55 nm west of Port Heiden to 105 nm northwest of Port Heiden to 195 nm east of Saint George to 50 nm north-northeast of Saint George to Saint Paul to 95 nm west-northwest of Saint Paul to 80 nm south-southwest of Saint Matthew Island to 170 nm west-northwest of Saint Matthew Island. The ice edge is new close pack ice. FORECAST FOR THE BERING SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is moderate. Persistent northerly winds under an Arctic airmass will shift to northwest winds from Saturday through Monday. Expect the ice edge to advance to the south around 10 nm/day through Friday. For Saturday through Monday, expect the ice edge to move southward 10-15 nm/day. Sea ice has reached Saint Paul Island and will continue towards Saint George Island, possibly reaching Saint George by early next week. -COOK INLET- PKZ740-Cook Inlet North of Kalgin Island- PZK741-Kachemak Bay- PKZ742-Cook Inlet Kalgin Island to Point Bede- The main ice edge in Cook Inlet extends from near Ninilchik to Chinitna Bay. FORECAST FOR COOK INLET (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is high. A cold airmass overhead will allow much of the Inlet to re- freeze through Thursday. The ice edge will continue to advance southward 5-10 nm/day. Friday and Saturday a warmer air mass moves overhead along with light southerly winds which will briefly pause new ice growth and may melt some of the newest ice in the Inlet. On Sunday and Monday, a colder airmass will return and promote sea ice to continue freezing. Please note that ice motion in Cook Inlet is highly influenced by tides. && Lawson/Fenrich