text: Army Operations in Maritime Environments
  extended daylight, high latitudes, seasonally changing terrain, and rapidly changing weather patterns define
  Arctic conditions, and they all have impacts on the operational and mission variables. The variability of the
  physical terrain and weather exposes military forces and capabilities to increased levels of risk.
  7-8. The Arctic is not challenging solely due to extreme cold temperatures. Ground mobility is typically
  most favorable during the winter months. Summer poses significant challenges for most vehicles moving off
  road, while the most challenging period is the spring thaw when ground movement becomes impossible
  across large swaths of territory. Regardless of season, air and sea mobility are critical enablers for military
  operations. Thawing permafrost affects infrastructure across the region. Lacking the climate moderating
  effect of the warm Gulf Stream, the North American Arctic hosts a much harsher environment than the
  European Arctic. The warming of the Arctic has led to longer windows of reduced ice conditions over a
  larger area. Long-term trends indicate a more consistently navigable Arctic, potentially affecting the mobility
  of Army and threat forces during armed conflict.
  7-9. Operations in the Arctic region get more complicated when roadways, seaports, and airfields can
  become unusable depending on seasons. The loss or change of sea ice can open new waterways and increase
  transit through the region. This could require additional forces, equipment capability, and infrastructure
  investments to secure the U.S. homeland, allied partners and infrastructure, or the northern avenues of
  approach during armed conflict.
  CONSIDERATIONS UNIQUE TO THE MARITIME ENVIRONMENT
  7-10. Threats to Army forces in a maritime theater include those in any other type of theater. Additionally,
  commanders and staffs must take into account unique joint and enemy courses of action in planning and
  executing operations in a maritime environment.
  JOINT FORCE CONSIDERATIONS IN A MARITIME ENVIRONMENT
  7-11. The heavily interdependent nature of joint operations means that the defeat of one part of the joint
  force puts the other parts at significant risk. The failure of Army forces to retain key terrain or protect air and
  naval bases while preserving their own combat power could result in the loss of air and maritime superiority,
  which in turn could lead to the ultimate defeat in detail of unsupported Army forces in an entire area of
  responsibility (AOR).
  7-12. Army forces require a joint common operational picture (COP) of friendly forces and their operations,
  including those of allies and partners, in all domains. An inaccurate joint or partner COP could cause flawed
  assumptions and situational understanding that decreases effective decision making.
  7-13. As with other environments, planning land operations in maritime environments should address
  relevant factors affecting friendly and enemy operations. The products and tools typically gathered to plan
  and portray the unique characteristics of a maritime environment include riverine and coastal navigation
  charts or tidal reports and observations from local fishing communities. Additional characteristics to consider
  include—
  (cid:122) Coastal terrain and soil compositions.
  (cid:122) Commerce and trade along navigable waterways.
  (cid:122) Maritime-specific infrastructure.
  (cid:122) Navigable bodies of water.
  (cid:122) Population densities and variations along shores and near navigable waterways.
  (cid:122) Tidal flow, surf conditions, and current directions.
  (cid:122) Natural obstacles adjacent to terrain (including sandbars, shoals, mud flats, and dunes).
  ENEMY COURSES OF ACTION UNIQUE TO THE MARITIME ENVIRONMENT
  7-14. Enemy forces have the ability to take multiple actions unique to the maritime environment to hinder
  joint operations. They use capabilities from all domains to interdict lines of communications between the
  strategic support area and forward-positioned Army forces, putting forces at risk of isolation and beyond the
  supporting distance from other joint force elements. Enemy forces target shipping that carries the bulk of