Related topics: climate change , sea ice
Arctic
hideThe Arctic (pronounced /ˈɑrktɪk/ or /ˈɑrtɪk/) is the region around the Earth's North Pole, opposite the Antarctic region around the South Pole. The Arctic includes the Arctic Ocean (which overlies the North Pole) and parts of Canada, Greenland (a territory of Denmark), Russia, the United States (Alaska), Iceland, Norway, Sweden and Finland.
The word Arctic comes from the Greek αρκτικός (arktikos), "near the Bear, arctic, northern" and that from the word άρκτος (arktos), which means bear. The name refers either to the constellation Ursa Major, the "Great Bear", which is prominent in the northern portion of the celestial sphere, or to the constellation Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear", which contains Polaris, the Pole Star, also known as the North Star.[citation needed]
The Arctic region can be defined as the area north of the Arctic Circle (66° 33’N), which is the approximate limit of the midnight sun and the polar night. Alternatively, it can be defined as the region where the average temperature for the warmest month (July) is below 10 °C (50 °F); the northernmost tree line roughly follows the isotherm at the boundary of this region. Socially and politically, the Arctic region includes the northern territories of the eight Arctic states, including Sapmi, although by natural science definitions much of this territory is considered subarctic.
The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean (which is sometimes considered to be a northern arm of the Atlantic Ocean) surrounded by treeless permafrost. In recent years the extent of the sea ice has declined. Life in the Arctic includes organisms living in the ice, zooplankton and phytoplankton, fish and marine mammals, birds, land animals, plants, and human societies.
The Arctic region is a unique area among Earth's ecosystems. The cultures in the region and the Arctic indigenous peoples have adapted to its cold and extreme conditions.
Due to the poleward migration of the planet's isotherms (about 35 miles per decade during the past 30 years as a consequence of global warming), the Arctic region (as defined by tree line and temperature) is currently shrinking. Perhaps the most spectacular result of Arctic shrinkage is sea ice loss. There is a large variance in predictions of Arctic sea ice loss, with models showing near-complete to complete loss in September from 2040 to some time well beyond 2100. About half of the analyzed models show near-complete to complete sea ice loss in September by the year 2100.
For more information about Arctic, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with arctic
Computer simulation strengthens link between climate change and release of subsea methane
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 17, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (23) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A first-of-its-kind computer simulation that mirrors real-world observations of methane bubbling up from a seabed in the Arctic Ocean provides further evidence that warming oceans may unleash ...
Colliding auroras produce an explosion of light
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Dec 17, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (8) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- A network of cameras deployed around the Arctic in support of NASA's THEMIS mission has made a startling discovery about the Northern Lights. Sometimes, vast curtains of aurora borealis collide, ...
Soup can reopens mystery of doomed Franklin Expedition
Dec 15, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (8) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Lead levels that are "off the scale" have been confirmed after tests were done this morning on the lid of a soup can dating back more than 150 years. The findings reopen the mystery surrounding ...
New Russian missile failure sparks UFO frenzy
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Dec 10, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (10) |
25
Russia's new nuclear-capable missile suffered another failed test launch, the defence ministry said Thursday, solving the mystery of a spectacular plume of white light that appeared over Norway.
Portions of Arctic coastline eroding, no end in sight, says new study
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 14, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (9) |
4
The northern coastline of Alaska midway between Point Barrow and Prudhoe Bay is eroding by up to one-third the length of a football field annually because of a "triple whammy" of declining sea ice, warming ...
North Pole wolf emails locations to researchers
Dec 01, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (4) |
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In July the scientists, one from the United States, the other from Canada, put the satellite collar on Brutus, the leader of his wolf pack, on remote Ellesmere Island, only 600 miles from the North Pole. Their ...
Big freeze plunged Europe into ice age in months
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 30, 2009 |
4 / 5 (17) |
7
In the film, 'The Day After Tomorrow' the world enters the icy grip of a new glacial period within the space of just a few weeks. Now new research shows that this scenario may not be so far from the truth after all.
Understanding ocean climate
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 10, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
High-resolution computer simulations performed by scientists at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS) are helping to understand the inflow of North Atlantic water to the Arctic Ocean and how ...
Study reveals how Arctic food webs affect mercury in polar bears
Dec 08, 2009 |
3 / 5 (2) |
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With growing concerns about the effects of global warming on polar bears, it's increasingly important to understand how other environmental threats, such as mercury pollution, are affecting these magnificent Arctic animals.
Researchers Establish Common Seasonal Patterns Among Bacterial Communities in Arctic Rivers
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Nov 24, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- New research on bacterial communities throughout six large Arctic river ecosystems reveals predictable temporal patterns, suggesting that scientists could use these communities as markers ...
Arctic at warmest levels in 2,000 years or more
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Sep 03, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (64) |
25
Arctic temperatures in the 1990s reached their warmest level of any decade in at least 2,000 years, new research indicates. The study, which incorporates geologic records and computer simulations, provides ...
53 million-year-old high Arctic mammals wintered in darkness
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jun 01, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (17) |
74
(PhysOrg.com) -- Ancestors of tapirs and ancient cousins of rhinos living above the Arctic Circle 53 million years ago endured six months of darkness each year in a far milder climate than today that featured ...
Mystery mechanism drove global warming 55 million years ago
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Jul 13, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (25) |
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A runaway spurt of global warming 55 million years ago turned Earth into a hothouse but how this happened remains worryingly unclear, scientists said on Monday.
Increasing Antarctic sea ice extent linked to the ozone hole
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Apr 21, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (70) |
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Increased growth in Antarctic sea ice during the past 30 years is a result of changing weather patterns caused by the ozone hole according to new research published this week (Thurs 23 April 2009).
In Greenland, warming fuels dream of hidden wealth
Nov 27, 2009 |
3.5 / 5 (4) |
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(AP) -- Gert Ignatiussen returns to this fjord-front Inuit town with the spoils of his hunting trip. Six seals, all killed with a single shot to the head.
