Russia is attempting to claim more of the Arctic seabed, an area rich in oil, gas and minerals. It’s also expanding shipping and reopening Arctic bases. Here are two things the U.S. can do about it.
The polar night can last for weeks and even months in the high Arctic.
Rowan Romeyn/Alamy Stock Photo
A transcript of episode 5 of The Conversation Weekly podcast, including stories on the Arctic Ocean and new archaeological finds in Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge.
The Arctic is warming two to three times faster than any other place on Earth.
Kevin Xu Photography via Shutterstock
Plus, new discoveries about early humans in Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge. Listen to episode 5 of The Conversation Weekly podcast.
Scientists have found widespread evidence of microplastics in the Arctic Ocean. This could further stress the fragile Arctic ecosystem and the food it provides to people living there.
(Shutterstock)
Microplastic pollution is a global issue, but where do they come from and how are they transported across the ocean? A new study finds polyester microfibres are common throughout the Arctic Ocean.
Belugas use sound to communicate, navigate the dark marine environment and find food. But climate change is opening up Arctic waters to more sound, and could affect the health and survival of belugas.
More than 600 experts will spend the next year drifting in Arctic waters to gain a better understanding of how climate change is affecting the region and how it can be fought.
A camera catches a huge Greenland shark in eastern Baffin Bay, near Disko Bay, Greenland.
Jonathan Fisher
New shipping opportunities are opening up in the Arctic as sea ice continues to recede. But travel is still dangerous and the region isn’t equipped to deal with more vessel traffic.
Since 2005, the Barents Sea has become too warm for sea ice to exist south of the Polar Front.
The captain of a Finnish icebreaker looks out from the bridge as it sails into floating sea ice on the Victoria Strait while traversing the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago in July 2017. The waterways of the Arctic are of particular interest to non-Arctic jurisdictions like China and the European Union.
(AP Photo/David Goldman)
The recent Arctic Council meeting in Finland shows there’s still avid interest in developing the Arctic. Some are arguing the entire region should be considered a ‘global commons.’
A large female Greenland shark observed near the community of Arctic Bay, Nunavut.
(Brynn Devine)
China has been very quiet in negotiations over fisheries regulations for the central Arctic Ocean. Why is the country’s behaviour there so dramatically different from what it pursues in Antarctica?