Ice Drift / 流冰
Background
Ice drift is natural phenomena that happens yearly in Eastern Hokkaido (and probably some other places in the world as well). So, my parents brought me to Eastern Hokkaido on early this year in an attempt to see Ice drift.
What is an ice drift? / 什么是流冰？
Ice drift is also known as brash ice or sea ice which is sea ice that's not attached to a shoreline or fixed object. It's carried by winds and currents, and when it combines into a large mass, it's called pack ice. Drift ice is commonly seen in cold oceans and seas, particularly during the winter months.
流冰也称为碎冰或海冰，是指没有依附在海岸线或固定物体上的海冰。它任由风和海洋流推动，当它们汇聚成大载体时，就被称为浮冰。流冰常见于寒冷的海洋，尤其是在冬季。
How does it form? / 它是如何形成的？
Drift ice is a result of detaching of large ice. Large ice may be broken under different conditions hence leaving small pieces of cracked ice. Moving currents and winds would then move the detached ice from one place in the sea to the other.
The breaking of ice may be caused by strong sea currents and winds. These pieces are thus free from the main one and can be swept by the waters hence the name “drift ice.” In contrast, fast ice is attached to the shoreline as well as other stationary objects. In this case, fast ice would only move when the objects they are connected to are also moved.
流冰是由大块冰体分离形成的。大块冰体可能在不同条件下破裂，分解为小块碎冰。流动的海洋流和风会将分离的冰体从海面的一处推移到另一处。
强海洋流和风也可能导致冰块破裂。因此，这些碎冰脱离了主冰体，逐渐被海水冲走，因此得名“流冰”。相比之下，固定冰体则依附在海岸线和其他固定物体上。在这种情况下，固定冰体只有当其依附的物体也移动时才会移动。
*In the case of ice drift in Eastern Hokkaido, the ice originates from the Amur River in Russia which then drifts through the Sea of Okhotsk to reach East Hokkaido, usually around mid-January to early February. It usually lasted till mid-March to mid-April. Unfortunately, during our trip around end January this year, the ice drift was formed up late and we couldn't see any ice drift. It only arrives at Sea of Okhotsk around mid to end February.
Where Is Drift Ice Found? / 流冰在哪里发现？
Ice is mostly found in the cold regions of the world. These regions range from mountain peaks and Polar Regions. However, the most notable ones are the Arctic and the Antarctic ice packs. The Arctic ice pack is found in the northern Polar Regions while the Antarctic ice pack is located to the south. Other cold regions also have ice though they are less in size as compared to the polar areas.
Seasonal changes in atmospheric conditions have significant impacts on the ice packs. During the cold seasons, sea waters are cold hence ice covers most parts of the polar areas. When temperatures rise, there is a significant increase in water levels in the sea; thus, water moves from the equatorial and tropical regions. Consequently, moving water and winds cause the packs of ice to break into pieces. These discrete pieces of ice are driven by the winds and sea water hence, drift ice is formed.
冰体主要分布在世界寒冷地区。这些地区包括山峰和极地。然而，最引人注目的冰体则处在南北极和冰山盖顶。北极冰盖位于北极地区，而南极冰盖位于极地南部。其他寒冷地区也有冰盖，但面积比极地小。
大气层环境的季节性变化对冰盖有显著的影响。在寒冷的季节，海水寒冷，因此冰盖覆盖了极地大部分地区。当气温升高时，海水水位会显著上升；因此，海水从赤道和热带地区流出。因此，流动的水和风会导致冰盖破碎成碎片。这些离散的冰体在风和海水的推动下，形成了流冰。
What are the benefits of ice drifts to the environment? / 冰流对环境有什么好处？
Sea ice is an important part of the Arctic and Antarctic ecosystems. The motion of sea ice is important for understanding how these ecosystems are evolving, as well as for helping ships safely navigate polar waters. Currents and wind are the major drivers of sea ice motion, though processes within the ice itself can also contribute to motion.
Sea ice movement can contribute to melting as the ice drifts into warmer waters. Additionally, the thickness of the ice can affect its speed as the ease of thinner ice expands and contracts can cause it to move faster, but very thin ice has less internal stress and moves mainly due to external factors. Because of this, the melting of sea ice due to global warming can have complicated effects on sea ice motion.
海冰是北极和南极生态系统的重要组成部分。海冰的运动对于理解这些生态系统的演化以及帮助船舶安全航行于极地水域至关重要。洋流和风是海冰运动的主要驱动力，尽管冰本身的过程也会导致运动。
海冰运动会导致融化，因为冰会漂移到较温暖的水域。此外，冰的厚度会影响其速度，因为较薄的冰的膨胀和收缩会导致其移动速度更快，但非常薄的冰内部应力较小，其移动主要受外部因素的影响。因此，全球变暖导致的海冰融化会对海冰运动产生复杂的影响。
I also learned that ice drift is ecologically important. Some examples of its benefits are:
Support marine ecosystem. As the ice is formed, it traps nutrients from the ocean water and when it melts, it releases those nutrients that feed phytoplankton. These phytoplankton attract fish, seabirds and some marine mammals like seals.
Habitat for some species. These drift ice provides resting area for some species such as seals, eagles, etc.
Fun Fact / 趣味知识
It is a common misconception that drift ice is the same as dry ice. While both are forms of ice, they are vastly different substances. Drift ice is a type of sea ice that moves with ocean currents, and it's made of frozen water. Dry ice, on the other hand, is solid carbon dioxide, which doesn't melt into a liquid but instead sublimates directly into a gas.
人们普遍误以为流冰和干冰是一样的。虽然两者都是冰的形式，但它们是截然不同的物质。流冰是一种随洋流移动的海冰，由冻结的水组成。而干冰是固态二氧化碳，它不会融化成液体，而是直接升华为气体。
More about dry ice
I want to add in about Dry Ice, Dry Ice is a Frozen Carbon Dioxide with low Entropy, On the other hand, Regular Ice holds Oxygen and Hydrogen and in more of an orderly manner (Low Entropy btw), it will hold the molecules from vibration which causes Heat and into high Entropy. Dry Ice though, they do the same thing except it will become High Entropy also (Can be Gas or Liquid). Dry Ice also placed in the desert and pushing them off will create 0 Friction due to its Solid and Frozen Structure. Dry Ice also helps to maintain a cooling system when placed in a confined space due to its extremely low temperature, creating a cold environment for cool and Preservation of Medicines.
Entropy is a measure of a system's disorder or randomness, often associated with the amount of energy in a system that is unavailable to do work. It is a key concept in various fields, including:
Thermodynamics: Entropy quantifies the degree of disorder in a thermodynamic system.
Statistical Mechanics: It describes the number of microscopic configurations that correspond to a thermodynamic system's macroscopic state.
Information Theory: Entropy measures the uncertainty or information content.
In essence, higher entropy indicates greater disorder and less energy available for doing work.
Sea Ice Motion | NASA Earthdata