| Term: | Fast ice |
| Definition: | Sea ice which remains fast along the coast, where it is attached to the shore, to an ice wall, to an ice front, or over shoals, or between grounded icebergs. Fast ice may extend a few m or several hundred km from the shore. Fast ice may be more than one year old. When its surface level becomes higher than about 2 m above sea level, it is called an ice shelf. |