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May 7, 2025 - Thawing on James Bay
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Spring melt was underway on James Bay on May 5, 2025, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of the region.
James Bay fills the southern extent of the larger Hudson Bay and is shared by the Canadian provinces of Ontario (west) and Quebec (east). It is covered by thick sea ice most of the year, with melt typically beginning in May or June when open water appears first along the eastern and southern reaches of the Bay. Hudson Bay typically becomes ice-free in July or August. By December, the ice begins once again to grow, first with fast ice that clings to the shorelines and ultimately to stretch across both James Bay and the greater Hudson Bay.
This seasonal rhythm of freeze-up and ice retreat is vital to the life cycle of animals such as polar bears, seals, and walrus, all of which feed and breed on the solid ice. Early ice retreat can cause breeding failure and starvation of these species. The open water and wetlands along the shoreline and on the crescent-shaped Akimiski Island also provide vital habitat for marine mammals, including beluga whales, and for migratory shorebirds and waterfowl.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 5/5/2025
Resolutions:
1km (386.1 KB), 500m (1.1 MB), 250m (871.2 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Spring melt was underway on James Bay on May 5, 2025, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of the region.
James Bay fills the southern extent of the larger Hudson Bay and is shared by the Canadian provinces of Ontario (west) and Quebec (east). It is covered by thick sea ice most of the year, with melt typically beginning in May or June when open water appears first along the eastern and southern reaches of the Bay. Hudson Bay typically becomes ice-free in July or August. By December, the ice begins once again to grow, first with fast ice that clings to the shorelines and ultimately to stretch across both James Bay and the greater Hudson Bay.
This seasonal rhythm of freeze-up and ice retreat is vital to the life cycle of animals such as polar bears, seals, and walrus, all of which feed and breed on the solid ice. Early ice retreat can cause breeding failure and starvation of these species. The open water and wetlands along the shoreline and on the crescent-shaped Akimiski Island also provide vital habitat for marine mammals, including beluga whales, and for migratory shorebirds and waterfowl.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 5/5/2025
Resolutions:
1km (386.1 KB), 500m (1.1 MB), 250m (871.2 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
