Ice Watch is a system which coordinates the collection and archive of sea ice observations recorded on ships in the Northern Hemisphere. The site provides open-source software for recording and sharing ship-borne Arctic sea ice observation data, and supports users who wish to collect data using these systems. Since 2012, the Ice Watch website, Arctic Ship-borne Sea Ice Standardization Tool (ASSIST) software, and other services have been hosted and developed by the Geographic Information Network of Alaska and the University of Alaska Fairbanks. However, the Ice Watch website has moved to a new home at the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.

As part of this transition, all existing users will need to re-register if they wish to continue using the new website. Users only need to register if they wish to submit data or receive email updates. Observation data is freely available to download from the website.

At the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, organizers have plans to develop the Ice Watch System, including continued development of the ASSIST system and making the data easier to access, and are also currently working with the Polar Citizen Science Collective to develop a new citizen science app allowing a simple interface for users to submit observations. Updates on these and other future developments are available online.

Organizers encourage those planning a cruise in the Arctic and are interested in collecting sea ice observations to contact them for details of how to get involved, and would also like to hear from those that use or publish work using Ice Watch data in order to keep track of how the data is used.

For more information, go to:
Ice Watch homepage

For questions, contact:
Alistair Everett
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.