Clear skies on the 29th of January allowed NASA satellites to obtain clear images of Estonia and the surrounding area, and it is estimated that ice has covered an area of about 90,000 square kilometers in the Baltic Sea, writes ERR News.
The total area of the Baltic Sea is 377,000 square kilometers, so a quarter of the sea is covered by ice. The Estonian Environment Agency reported that a stable ice cover of 15 to 30 centimeters thick has formed in the Pärnu Bay in the Veinameri Strait. The ice cover in these places is especially important for wildlife.
However, the current ice cover still lags significantly behind the historical average, which is about 170,000 square kilometers. Over the past 20 years, the Baltic Sea has had less and less ice in winter.
During the harsh winter of 2009/2010, the Baltic Sea was covered by ice for 309,000 square kilometers,
while ten years later, a record was set – ice covered only 37,000 square kilometers of the sea surface.
Ice cover is important for wildlife, especially seals, which need stable ice cover in February and March to give birth to their pups. The Gulf of Pärnu and the Veinameri Strait are particularly important for this. Ice also supports the marine ecosystem. When the sea is covered with ice, light cannot reach the deeper layers of water, which prevents the growth of algae. The current ice cover means that algae blooms will occur at their natural time, not much earlier.
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