Circular pieces of ice that are 30 cm to 3 m in diameter and up to 10 cm in thickness, which have raised rims due to the pieces striking against one another. Pancake ice may form on a slight swell from grease ice, shuga or slush, or as a result of the breaking of ice rind, nilas or, under severe conditions of swell or waves, from grey ice. Sometimes pancake ice forms at some depth, at an interface between water bodies of different physical characteristics, from where it floats to the surface; it may cover wide areas of water rapidly.
« Back to Glossary IndexPancake ice
« Back to Glossary Index