FZAK80 PAFC 112233 ICEAFC Sea Ice Forecast for Western and Arctic Alaskan Coastal Waters National Weather Service - Alaska Sea Ice Program 232 PM AKST Wednesday 11 March 2026 FORECAST VALID…Monday 16 March 2026 ANALYSIS CONFIDENCE…High to moderate. SYNOPSIS…Weak low pressure remains over the eastern Gulf of Alaska until a new low moves in from the northeastern Pacific Ocean. A high pressure system will build over the Bering Sea, spreading high pressure across the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas throughout the forecast period. Weak low pressure moves over the Canadian Archipelago on Sunday and 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 Monday. Break-off of shorefast ice is not expected. Otherwise, pack ice will move very little 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. Light and variable winds are expected through Saturday, then northwest winds increase slightly. Shorefast ice is not expected to break off anywhere along the Alaska coastline during the forecast 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 2'N 163 54'W to 55 43'N 162 59'W to 55 35'N 164 20'W to 55 55'N 167 49'W to 56 41'N 171 8'W to 58 19'N 174 4'W to 60 32'N 178 14'W. From land-based points in Alaska, the main ice edge in the Bering Sea extends from 45 nm northeast of Cape Sarichef to 33 nm north of Cold Bay to 60 nm northwest of Cold Bay to 70 nm southeast of Saint George Island to 45 nm west of Saint George Island to 130 nm south of Saint Matthew Island to 260 nm southwest of Gambell and continues into Russian waters. The ice edge is very open strips of ice. FORECAST FOR THE BERING SEA (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is moderate. Generally light northwesterly winds are expected over much of the Bering Sea through Friday then will shift northwesterly over the weekend. Expect the ice edge advance to slowly, 5-10 nm/day at most. The ice edge is encroaching on warmer sea surface temperatures, meaning the strips of ice along the ice edge are likely to melt as they move into warmer water. -COOK INLET- PKZ730-West of Barren Islands including Kamishak Bay- 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 between Ninilchik and Anchor Point to Chinitna Bay. There is also ice in Kamishak Bay. FORECAST FOR COOK INLET (DAYS 1 through 5)...Forecast confidence is moderate. Northerly winds and a late-season arctic air mass will continue over Cook Inlet through Monday. Expect little change in the extent of the sea ice despite the winds/air mass. Increasing sun angle and winds are keeping areas of open water from staying frozen. It is possible that new ice forms at night and melts during daylight hours. Please note that ice motion in Cook Inlet is highly influenced by tides. && Lawson