Schmidt Ice Cap
Icecap in Arctic Russia
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The Schmidt Ice Cap is an Arctic ice cap very near the limit of permanent sea ice, so as to be indistinguishable from the sea in winter, spring, and late fall. It covers almost all (~75-85%) of Schmidt Island, a Russian Arctic island above the 80th parallel north.[1][2] The ice cap's maximum elevation is ~320 metres (1,050 ft), and it has a diameter of 25.31 kilometres (15.73 mi) along its longest axis.[2]
| Schmidt Ice Cap | |
|---|---|
Schmidt Island in the top-left-center (far northwest of the archipelago). Ice cap indistinguishable from tundra section. | |
 Interactive map of Schmidt Ice Cap | |
| Coordinates | 81.12137°N 90.90033°E |
| Area | ~385 sq. km |
Climate
EF, with frigid winters and snowy, very cold summers. It may be warming due to climate change.[3] Almost all precipitation occurs as snow,[4] and November through April have never recorded a temperature high enough to melt snow.[5] Though the yearly mean maximum is 5 °C (41 °F), the ice cap (not the tundra on the outskirts of the island) is sufficiently cold that enough snow persists through the summer to support glaciation.[4][5]
| Climate data for Schmidt Ice Cap (not valid for the island's tundra, 1993-2023) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 27 (−3) |
27 (−3) |
25 (−4) |
30 (−1) |
46 (8) |
45 (7) |
61 (16) |
59 (15) |
55 (13) |
46 (8) |
28 (−2) |
27 (−3) |
61 (16) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 7 (−14) |
10 (−12) |
14 (−10) |
21 (−6) |
27 (−3) |
34 (1) |
41 (5) |
37 (3) |
30 (−1) |
23 (−5) |
14 (−10) |
12 (−11) |
41 (5) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | −11 (−24) |
−11 (−24) |
−6 (−21) |
7 (−14) |
19 (−7) |
27 (−3) |
32 (0) |
30 (−1) |
23 (−5) |
9 (−13) |
−4 (−20) |
−8 (−22) |
9 (−13) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | −17 (−27) |
−17 (−27) |
−11 (−24) |
1 (−17) |
16 (−9) |
25 (−4) |
30 (−1) |
28 (−2) |
19 (−7) |
5 (−15) |
−8 (−22) |
−11 (−24) |
5 (−15) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | −22 (−30) |
−22 (−30) |
−17 (−27) |
−6 (−21) |
12 (−11) |
23 (−5) |
27 (−3) |
25 (−4) |
16 (−9) |
1 (−17) |
−11 (−24) |
−18 (−28) |
1 (−17) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −35 (−37) |
−35 (−37) |
−33 (−36) |
−20 (−29) |
0 (−18) |
18 (−8) |
21 (−6) |
19 (−7) |
5 (−15) |
−13 (−25) |
−24 (−31) |
−31 (−35) |
−35 (−37) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −54 (−48) |
−47 (−44) |
−58 (−50) |
−36 (−38) |
−22 (−30) |
1 (−17) |
14 (−10) |
19 (−7) |
−6 (−21) |
−33 (−36) |
−42 (−41) |
−49 (−45) |
−58 (−50) |
| Average snowy days | 5.5 | 4.7 | 5.8 | 7.6 | 12 | 12.7 | 9 | 11.2 | 15.4 | 12.3 | 6.7 | 5.1 | 108 |
| Source 1: [4] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: [5] for extremes | |||||||||||||