Record-High Arctic Freshwater Will Flow Through Canadian Waters, Affecting Marine Environment and Atlantic Ocean Currents. Freshwater is accumulating in the Arctic Ocean. The Beaufort Sea, which is the largest Arctic Ocean freshwater reservoir, has increased its freshwater content by 40% over the past two decades. How and where this water will flow into the Atlantic Ocean is important for local and global ocean conditions. A study from the University of Washington, Los Alamos National Laboratory and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that this freshwater travels through the Canadian Archipelago to reach the Labrador Sea, rather than through the wider marine passageways that connect to seas in Northern Europe. The open-access study was published Feb. 23 in Nature Communications. UW News

 

Melting Arctic Forces Polar Bears to Adapt to Land-Based Diet- Russian Scientists. Polar bears are being forced to adapt to a land-based diet as their hunting grounds in the rapidly melting Arctic shrink, Russian scientists said Friday on the eve of International Polar BearDay. Polar bears have been forced south by rising temperatures and melting ice cover, limiting their ability to hunt seals and walruses and increasing encounters with human settlements. The Moscow Times

New Study Advances the Science of Arctic Climate 'Warning.' In a new study, Bowdoin's Phil Camill and a team of researchers say they've come up with a more accurate and powerful method for assessing the amount of carbon stored in Earth's northern permafrost. The scholars' work will also open the door to future studies that can predict the fate of this carbon and how it might influence the trajectory of global warming, Camill says. It's critically important to know how much carbon is contained in the cold lands of the North, because as Earth heats up, this ground will likely thaw and release large quantities of carbon dioxide, a potent greenhouse gas. Bowdoin

 

 

Joint Statement by the US Department of Transportation and Transport Canada on the Nexus Between Transportation and Climate Change. Recognizing the transport sector constitutes one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions for both nations, and in light of the integrated nature of our transportation sectors, Secretary Buttigieg and Minister Alghabra committed to reinvigorate our bilateral cooperation to fight climate change and limit the environmental impacts from our transportation networks-on land, air and sea. We will continue to support the development of green transport infrastructure along the border, including in our management of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway for maritime navigation. We will work to advance cleaner, sustainable and renewable fuels for shipping. We are dedicated to working with the IMO to effectively implement the ban on the use and carriage of heavy fuel oil (HFO) as fuel in the Arctic. We also look forward to exploring how we might address and support the transportation infrastructure needs of Arctic and Northern communities, such as safety, climate change, and fostering socio-economic opportunities. US Department of Transportation

 

Mysterious Stripes Spotted Over Russia in Satellite Images-and NASA is Perplexed. Scientists can't agree on why these hills in the Russian Arctic ripple with stripes. Near the Markha River in Arctic Siberia, the earth ripples in ways that scientists don't fully understand. Earlier this week, NASA researchers posted a series of satellite images of the peculiar wrinkled landscape to the agency's Earth Observatory website. Taken with the Landsat 8 satellite over several years, the photos show the land on both sides of the Markha River rippling with alternating dark and light stripes. The puzzling effect is visible in all four seasons, but it is most pronounced in winter, when white snow makes the contrasting pattern even more stark. Live Science