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Today's C
ongressional Action:
The House and Senate are not in session.
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Media
 The Arctic Circle May Be More Than 400 Miles North, but Seward Has Become an Arctic Port. In this picturesque Alaska port town more than 400 miles south of the Arctic Circle, two big symbols of U.S. Arctic ambition loomed over the harbor. Docked side by side, both preparing to head north, were the cutter Healy, the only polar-class U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker working in the Arctic, and the Crystal Serenity, the huge luxury cruise ship destined for an unprecedented journey through newly ice-sparse waters of the Northwest Passage over the top of Canada. Both ships' paths converged in Seward, a tourist destination, fishing center and recreation hub that is emerging as a support center and port for Arctic marine and science activities.
Alaska Dispatch News
Surrender in the Arctic: The DOI Five-Year Plan. In the United States, drilling in the offshore and other environmentally sensitive areas has become an increasingly controversial topic of discussion and often a political football over the last 40 years or so. Even in the Gulf of Mexico, where operators have been exploring for and developing rich oil and gas resources for many decades, proposals to drill in certain areas have run up on the shoals of political pushback. The Bill Clinton administration set most of the Eastern third of the Gulf off limits in the late 1990s due to political pressure from Florida officials citing concerns about potential impacts to tourism should a spill occur.
Forbes
Alaska Scientists on Climate Data Quest Get Rare View of Parks. Alaska is big. It's so big that it's home to two-thirds of America's national park land - that's 84,000 square miles, twice as much land as all the Lower 48 national parks combined. In these vast expanses of wilderness, where there are few trails and even fewer roads, it's still possible to tread where no human footsteps have gone before. "I've wondered that, in a number of these locations, if we were the first ones there," said Pam Sousanes, a scientist studying climate in Alaska's national parks, "and maybe some of the only people that have ever stood on that spot."
NBC News
 USCG to Test New SAR Capabilities. Arctic Chinook is scheduled to be held 22-24 August 2016 and aims to address the need for Arctic search and rescue capabilities due to commercial expansion into the region. NICS is a web-based system developed by the Department of Homeland Security and the Lincoln Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It guides users through standard incident response procedures and helps to organise search and rescue operations, accelerating the procedural process and allowing response commanders to chat with teams, send photographs and track assets using GPS.
Shephard News
Senator Angus King to Visit Greenland. Senator Angus King is headed to Greenland. King along with members of the U.S. Coast Guard as well as danish meteorological and defense officials are on a three day fact finding mission to examine the environmental and security implications of warming the arctic climate. They will look at the melting of arctic ice and the potential opening of new shipping routes between the Atlantic and Pacific and new energy markets.
WABI
Last Phase of the Canadian Arctic Mission to Map the Seabed. This is the third step in a long data-gathering mission to determine the extent of Canada's continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean. It took nearly a decade to get to know this region, one of the less well charted Canada. In 2014, the Louis S. St-Laurent, accompanied by the CCGS Terry Fox, had been slowed by the thickest ice. But the sailing conditions were more favorable in 2015 and 2016. This has allowed Canada to collect more data near the North Pole. The Louis S. St-Laurent will be accompanied by a bigger boat, the Swedish icebreaker Oden.
The Stopru
Inuit-led Suicide Prevention Strategy to Focus on Mental Wellness, Social Equity. A new strategy to prevent suicide among Canada's 60,000 Inuit was unveiled by Natan Obed, the president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, in partnership with Health Canada in Kuujjuaq, Que., today. Obed choked back tears as he talked about his own family and described the generations of trauma that have contributed to a high rate of suicide among Canada's Inuit. He was accompanied by Health Minister Jane Philpott, who was visibly moved by the stories she heard.
CBC News
 Gloomy Lingonberry Forecast for Northern Sweden. There will be a lot fewer lingonberries in the north of Sweden this year compared to last, according to the latest forecast from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU). In the north of the country there will only be 60 percent of the red berries, which Swedes traditionally turn into jam and eat with meatballs, compared to a normal year. "It's just in Götaland in the southern parts of Sweden which you could expect to get a decent lingonberry amount this year," said Jonas Dahlgren an analyst from SLU.
Eye on the Arctic
Diving Surveys in Cambridge Bay Record Region's Aquatic Diversity for Future Research. A group of aquatic researchers say the marine life in Arctic waters around Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, are "beautiful and surprising" after a month's worth of field work performing diving surveys in and around the area. Danny Kent with the Vancouver Aquarium says the findings were incredible.
CBC News
Russian Researchers Develop a Super Magnet for New Space and Arctic Projects. Researchers from the National University of Science and Technology MISiS (NUST MISiS) were the first to develop an innovative type of strong permanent magnets that retain their properties under extreme temperatures and that are required for extravehicular activity and Arctic operations, RIA Novosti reports, citing the university's press service. According to NUST MISiS, permanent magnets are important instrumental units in transportation systems, electrical and radio engineering, automatics and other sectors. The functional properties of permanent magnets depend on the operating temperature limits, beyond which a magnet can demagnetize and lose its properties.
The Arctic
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Legislative Action
No Arctic legislation was formally considered Friday.
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Future Events
Hosted by Saint Petersburg State University, the UArctic Congress 2016 will feature Science and Meeting sections, including:
- Acclaimed keynote speakers and scientific experts presenting research.
- Parallel sessions on Arctic science, policy, and education topics.
- Meetings for reps of the Council of UArctic and UArctic Rectors' Forum.
- Pre-Meetings to foster contacts and enhance networking.
- Opportunities to promote and market your organization and activities.
- A UArctic Student Forum with workshops.
- A Cultural and Social program.
The 2016 UArctic Rectors' Forum and the 19th annual meeting of the Council of UArctic form an integral part of the congress.
Conference on Water Innovations for Healthy Arctic Homes: September 18-21, 2016, Anchorage, Alaska. This circumpolar conference will bring together engineers, health experts, researchers, community members, policymakers, and innovators to discuss health benefits, challenges and innovations associated with making running water and sewer in remote northern communities safe, affordable and sustainable. Information and an expression of interest in attending can be found
here. (The full link is:
http://wihah2016.com/)
13th International Conference on Gas in Marine Sediments: September 19-22, 2016 (Tromso, Norway).
GIMS 13
promotes the study of natural gas and release systems on a global scale and
facilitates interdisciplinary and international cooperation. The conference
intends to bring together geologists, biologists, microbiologist, geophysicists, oceanographers, geochemists and scientists from modeling disciplines. The forum will provide a platform for current knowledge and future programs in gas inventories, fluxes and their role within the carbon cycle and biodiversity. Conference is organized by CAGE - Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate at UiT The
Arctic University of Norway. Abstract submission deadline is May 30th and registration deadline is June 20th. For more information:
http://gims13.uit.no
Bridging the Future of Arctic Social Science Research, September 23-24, 2016 (Monticello, Virginia, USA).
The event is sponsored by Arctic Horizons. The event will reassemble the members of the National Steering Committee and a small but diverse selection of representatives from the five regional workshops, to total about 15 people. The aim will be to identify and synthesize the core threads of the previous workshops and public contributions proffered between workshops. The target output for the workshop will be a final report draft and outline of steps leading to the final report release in June 2016. The Jefferson Institute will manage production of the publication.
Second International Conference on Natural Resources and Integrated Development of Coastal Areas in the Arctic Zone, September 27-29, 2016 (Arkhangelsk, Russia).
The Conference is organized by FASO of Russia, Russian Academy of Sciences, Government of Arkhangelsk region, Arkhangelsk Scientific Center and International Arctic Science Committee (IASC). Conference is aimed at elaboration of research-based practical measures and instruments for realization of human, natural and transport-logistical potential of the Arctic zone, including development of the Northern Sea Route and implementation of models of integrated coastal areas management. For additional information, please email.
Arctic Ambitions V: International Business Conference & Trade Show, October 4-5, 2016 (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). This once-a-year event uniquely focuses on business and investment opportunities flowing from developments in the Arctic. With interest in commercial development in the Arctic growing rapidly, WTC Anchorage initiated the Arctic Ambitions conference five years ago to address issues such as innovation, investment, infrastructure development, transportation, natural resources, and trade. At the event, corporate executives and senior government officials from across the Arctic, and around the world, make presentations and participate in panel discussions. This year's conference also includes a Trade Show and B2B Matchmaking Session. For more information, please contact Greg Wolf (
[email protected]) or call
907-278-7233.
Inuit traditions are a repository of Inuit culture and a primary expression of Inuit identity. The theme for the 2016 Inuit Studies Conference invites Elders, knowledge-bearers, researchers, artists, policy-makers, students and others to engage in conversations about the many ways in which traditions shape understanding, while registering social and cultural change. The institutional hosts of "Inuit Traditions," Memorial University of Newfoundland and the Nunatsiavut Government, invite you to contribute to an exchange of knowledge to be held in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, October 7-10, 2016. Presentations on all aspects of Inuit studies will be welcome.
Arctic Technology Conference, October 24-26, 2016 (St. John's, Canada). Founded in 1969, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) is the world's foremost event for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. The Arctic Technology Conference (ATC) is built upon OTC's successful multidisciplinary approach, with 14 technical societies and organizations working together to deliver the world's most comprehensive Arctic event.
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External links in this publication, and on the USARC's World Wide Web site (
www.arctic.gov) do not constitute endorsement by the US Arctic Research Commission of external Web sites or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities, the USARC does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. These links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this newsletter and the USARC Web site.
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