Asia and Americas on Course for Arctic Collision
“It’ll be a geological showdown for the ages, with North America, South America, Europe and Asia colliding head-on over the North Pole to create a supercontinent called Amasia.” Wired: “Unfortunately, nobody we know will be around to watch the collision, which won’t happen for another 50 million years or more. But it’s still fun to … Continue reading
polar ants: arctic research facility
Polar Ants, an intriguing thesis project from the AA’s Design Research Lab exploring possibilities of robots digging structures beneath the arctic for research/living spaces by Lukasz Szlachcic, Anais Mikaelian, Laila Selim, and Bita Mohamadi. Designboom says: “this project therefore proposes a living architecture, and challenges the classical modernist notions of permanence and stability. the theme … Continue reading
Volcanic origin for Little Ice Age
Glaciers in the Alps have receded dramatically from their most historically recent maxima (the Little Ice Age, AD 1750-1850). This painting by Birman in 1826 illustrates the Mer de Glace, France soon after the glacier had reached its maximum extent (Gugelmann Collection, Swiss National Library, Bern). Richard Black, Environment correspondent for BBC News, reports: “The … Continue reading
7 Crazy Facts You Should Know About The Arctic
The Arctic is coming in from the cold. We’ve all seen the pictures of starving polar bears, staring bleakly at the retreating pack ice on which their survival depends. But as the polar ice cap shrinks, this oceanic basin is also opening up to human activity. And as its vast economic resources become increasingly accessible, … Continue reading
“Cold Front: Conflict Ahead in Arctic Waters”
A new book by David Fairhall: “The Arctic. Land of ice and the six-month day, irresistible goal for explorers and adventurers, enduring source of romance and mystery, and now also a poignant and unavoidable indicator of the impact of climate change. As the ice cap shrinks, the geography of the entire Arctic region changes—clear shipping … Continue reading
Arctic Report Card 2011
Tracking recent environmental changes, with 23 essays on different aspects of the environment, by a team of 112 international authors, and independently peer-reviewed by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme of the Arctic Council. More information and a PDF of the entire report can be found here. A major conclusion of the 2011 update to … Continue reading
The Arctic Blog 