An ice floe () is a large
pack of
floating ice often defined as a flat piece at least 20 m across at its widest point, and up to more than 10 km across.
is a floating field of
sea ice
Sea ice arises as seawater freezes. Because ice is less dense than water, it floats on the ocean's surface (as does fresh water ice, which has an even lower density). Sea ice covers about 7% of the Earth's surface and about 12% of the world's oce ...
composed of several ice floes. They may cause
ice jams on freshwater rivers, and in the open ocean may damage the
hull
Hull may refer to:
Structures
* Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle
* Fuselage, of an aircraft
* Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds
* Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship
* Submarine hull
Mathematics
* Affine hull, in affi ...
s of ships.
Gallery
File:Drift ice in Hudson Strait, 2014.jpg, Several ice floes in the Hudson Strait
Hudson Strait (french: Détroit d'Hudson) links the Atlantic Ocean and Labrador Sea to Hudson Bay in Canada. This strait lies between Baffin Island and Nunavik, with its eastern entrance marked by Cape Chidley in Newfoundland and Labrador and ...
File:IceNomenclature-2LightPack.jpg, Ice floes in the Weddell Sea
File:In the Arctic Sea - An Ice Floe Adrift (NBY 439626).jpg, "In the Arctic Sea - An Ice Floe Adrift", 1903
References
Sea ice
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