Polar News and Notes Arctic

A volcano located on Umnak Island in the western Aleutians Islands erupted on Saturday, July 12, 2008, with little warning to the ranch family who shares the island or the Alaska Volcano Observatory, which monitors the state’s hazardous volcanoes.
The crater of the Okmok Volcano is about six miles wide and 1,600 feet deep. Seismologists maintain […]

In June 2008, Miami, Florida, artist Xavier Cortada traveled to the North Pole with sound artist Juan Carlos Espinosa to create paintings using Arctic water and install eco-art at 90 degrees North.
Cortada made a similar art trek to the South Pole in January 2007 as a recipient of an Antarctic Artists and Writers Program residency […]

Have you ever felt confused by the complexity of the polar regions? Or realized that your knowledge just scratches the surface of these far-off places? If you have, you are certainly in good company. All of us - especially the project staff at Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears - have been confronted with our lack of understanding […]

This July, a team of four scientists, a writer and a photographer from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the University of Washington will return to Greenland for their third year of investigating glacial lakes, which form atop the ice sheet each spring and summer. The expedition runs from July 7 to 24.
From their tents […]

News from the polar regions in June includes speculation on the future of the Arctic sea ice and permafrost, unexpected behavior of an Antarctic ice stream, and new technology designed to assist in polar research. Missed these stories the first time? Read on!
In May, we reported on an international, three-week expedition designed to validate the […]

This summer 75 teenagers, ages 14-19, will sail to the Arctic with a team of scientists, environmentalists and polar educators in the Students on Ice program. The Arctic expedition, August 2-17, will explore southern Baffin Island, Nunavut, and the northern reaches of Nunavik in Quebec province. The itinerary includes workshops, lectures and seminars as well […]

Russian and American scientists have found that the world’s largest lake, located in Siberia, is becoming warmer, another sign of climate change.  
They have expressed surprise because it was thought this lake with its vast volume of water and a unique water circulation would be more resistant to climate change.
Lake Baikal contains 20 percent of […]

By 2009, Greenland’s Institute of Natural Resources and the University of Greenland expect to open the Centre for Climate Research in Nuuk. The centre will document climate changes and study the impact on Arctic society and the environment. Greenland and Denmark scientists will work from the facility as well as scientists from other countries.
An Institute […]

While the plight of the polar bear deservedly gets most of the attention in Arctic-warming scenarios, the narwhal is even more at risk, according to a study of marine mammals’ vulnerability. Scientists from three countries identified risk factors for 11 mammals that live in the Arctic year-round.  
The narwhal is a pale-colored porpoise with a […]

News from the polar regions in May includes continued trouble for Arctic sea ice and the marine mammals that depend on it for survival, research efforts in the Arctic, and analysis from the past Antarctic field season. Missed these stories the first time? Read on!
Data released from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration indicates that […]