Tracking Arctic Ice: An Inexpensive Sensor Package Gets Data Back Despite Harsh Conditions

Every winter, sea ice grows in the Arctic Ocean, radiating out from the dense ice pack surrounding the North Pole to a ragged edge, beyond which icebergs float freely. The region between the ice pack and the sea edge is known as the marginal ice zone, where waves interact with the ice in poorly understood ways. A better understanding of this zone is crucial to improving both short-term weather and navigation forecasts as well as long-term climate models.