COMPARISON BETWEEN THE NORTHERN SEA ROUTE SHOWN BY SATELLITE AIS AND SEA ICE AREAS

Abstract

 To clear the actual voyage situation on the Northern Sea Route compared with sea ice conditions, we examine the voyage situation in the Arctic Ocean using Satellite AIS data and sea ice concentration data (OISST). The analysis duration is July in 2012 of which year is the minimum sea ice area in the Arctic Ocean. We focus on the tanker which goes between the Europe and the Bering Strait via the Arctic Ocean. The tanker tended to voyage more quickly in the region with lower sea ice concentration. We suggest that the ship passage on the Northern Sea Route is able to explain to some extent with Satellite AIS data and sea ice concentration.