Arctic

The word Arctic comes from the Greek word {{Wikt-lang|el|ἀρκτικός}} arktikos "near the Bear, northern"Liddell, Henry George and Scott, Robert. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2315193 "Arktikos."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102053/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2315193&redirect=true |date=30 June 2023 }} A Greek-English Lexicon. Perseus Digital Library. and from the word {{Wikt-lang|el|ἄρκτος}} arktos meaning "bear" for either to the constellation known as Ursa Major, the "Great Bear", which is prominent in the northern portion of the celestial sphere,Liddell, Henry George and Scott, Robert. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2315199 "Arktos."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102051/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3D%2315199&redirect=true |date=30 June 2023 }} A Greek-English Lexicon. Perseus Digital Library.{{cite book |last=Ridpath |first=Ian |year=2018 |title=Star Tales |url=https://www.google.com.my/books/edition/Star_Tales/7dXYDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=arktos+ursa&pg=PA172&printsec=frontcover |location=Cambridge, England, UK |publisher=James Clarke & Company |isbn=978-0-7188-4781-4 |pages=172-176 }} or the constellation Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear", which contains the celestial north pole (currently very near Polaris, the current north Pole Star, or North Star).{{cite web |url=http://www.souledout.org/nightsky/ursamandm/ursamajorandminor.html |title=The Great Bear Constellation Ursa Major |access-date=10 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101130031637/http://souledout.org/nightsky/ursamandm/ursamajorandminor.html |archive-date=30 November 2010 |url-status=live}}

There are several definitions of what area is contained within the Arctic. The area can be defined as north of the Arctic Circle (about 66° 34'N), the approximate southern limit of the midnight sun and the polar night. Another definition of the Arctic, which is popular with ecologists, is the region in the Northern Hemisphere where the average temperature for the warmest month (July) is below {{convert|10|C}}; the northernmost tree line roughly follows the isotherm at the boundary of this region.[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/arctic "arctic."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100314115954/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Arctic |date=14 March 2010 }} Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. Retrieved 2 May 2009.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lJX9fdU4NvkC&pg=RA1-PA482 |title=Fundamentals of the physical environment |last=Addison |first=Kenneth |publisher=Routledge |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-415-23293-7 |page=482 |access-date=15 November 2015 |archive-date=30 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102124/https://books.google.com/books?id=lJX9fdU4NvkC&pg=RA1-PA482 |url-status=live}}

{{Main|Climate of the Arctic|Climate change in the Arctic}}

File:Laponie001.jpg located in Lapland (Finland)]]

The climate of the Arctic region is characterized by cold winters and cool summers. Its precipitation mostly comes in the form of snow and is low, with most of the area receiving less than {{cvt|50|cm}}. High winds often stir up snow, creating the illusion of continuous snowfall. Average winter temperatures can go as low as {{convert|-40|C}}, and the coldest recorded temperature is approximately {{convert|-68|C}}. Coastal Arctic climates are moderated by oceanic influences, having generally warmer temperatures and heavier snowfalls than the colder and drier interior areas. The Arctic is affected by current global warming, leading to climate change in the Arctic, including Arctic sea ice decline, diminished ice in the Greenland ice sheet, and Arctic methane emissions as the permafrost thaws.{{Cite web |last=Radford |first=Tim |date=2020-09-02 |title=Arctic heating races ahead of worst case estimates |url=https://climatenewsnetwork.net/arctic-heating-races-ahead-of-worst-case-estimates/ |access-date=2020-09-03 |website=Climate News Network |language=en-GB |archive-date=4 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200904083815/https://climatenewsnetwork.net/arctic-heating-races-ahead-of-worst-case-estimates/ |url-status=live}}{{Cite journal |last1=Dormann |first1=C. F. |last2=Woodin |first2=S. J. |date=February 2002 |title=Climate change in the Arctic: using plant functional types in a meta-analysis of field experiments: Meta-analysis of arctic experiments |url=http://doi.wiley.com/10.1046/j.0269-8463.2001.00596.x |journal=Functional Ecology |language=en |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=4–17 |doi=10.1046/j.0269-8463.2001.00596.x |access-date=16 February 2023 |archive-date=30 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102048/https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1046/j.0269-8463.2001.00596.x |url-status=live}} The melting of Greenland's ice sheet is linked to polar amplification.{{Cite journal |last1=Tedesco |first1=M. |last2=Mote |first2=T. |last3=Fettweis |first3=X. |last4=Hanna |first4=E. |last5=Jeyaratnam |first5=J. |last6=Booth |first6=J. F. |last7=Datta |first7=R. |last8=Briggs |first8=K. |date=2016-06-09 |title=Arctic cut-off high drives the poleward shift of a new Greenland melting record |journal=Nature Communications |volume=7 |page=11723 |doi=10.1038/ncomms11723 |issn=2041-1723 |pmc=4906163 |pmid=27277547 |bibcode=2016NatCo...711723T}}

Due to the poleward migration of the planet's isotherms (about {{cvt|35|mi|order=flip}} 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.{{cite web |url=http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/planet-peril-%E2%80%93-part-i |last=Hansen |first=Jim |title=The Planet in Peril – Part I |publisher=Yale Center for the Study of Globalization |date=19 October 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091015173024/http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/planet-peril-%E2%80%93-part-i |archive-date=15 October 2009}} Perhaps the most alarming result of this is Arctic sea ice shrinkage. There is a large variance in predictions of Arctic sea ice loss, with models showing near-complete to complete loss in September from 2035 to sometime around 2067.{{Cite web |last=Kirby |first=Alex |date=2020-08-11 |title=End of Arctic sea ice by 2035 possible, study finds |url=https://climatenewsnetwork.net/end-of-arctic-sea-ice-by-2035-possible-study-finds/ |access-date=2020-09-03 |website=Climate News Network |language=en-GB |archive-date=15 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200915162323/https://climatenewsnetwork.net/end-of-arctic-sea-ice-by-2035-possible-study-finds/ |url-status=live}}{{Cite web |last=Reich |first=Katharine |date=2019-11-15 |title=Arctic Ocean could be ice-free for part of the year as soon as 2044 |url=https://phys.org/news/2019-11-arctic-ocean-ice-free-year.html |access-date=2020-09-03 |website=phys.org |language=en |archive-date=30 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930154138/https://phys.org/news/2019-11-arctic-ocean-ice-free-year.html |url-status=live}}

Arctic life is characterized by adaptation to short growing seasons with long periods of sunlight, and cold, dark, snow-covered winter conditions.

File:Arctic poppy among rocks.jpg in bloom within the Qausuittuq National Park on Bathurst Island]]

Arctic vegetation is composed of plants such as dwarf shrubs, graminoids, herbs, lichens, and mosses, which all grow relatively close to the ground, forming tundra. An example of a dwarf shrub is the bearberry. As one moves northward, the amount of warmth available for plant growth decreases considerably. In the northernmost areas, plants are at their metabolic limits, and small differences in the total amount of summer warmth make large differences in the amount of energy available for maintenance, growth, and reproduction. Colder summer temperatures cause the size, abundance, productivity, and variety of plants to decrease. Trees cannot grow in the Arctic, but in its warmest parts, shrubs are common and can reach {{cvt|2|m|ftin}} in height; sedges, mosses and lichens can form thick layers. In the coldest parts of the Arctic, much of the ground is bare; non-vascular plants such as lichens and mosses predominate, along with a few scattered grasses and forbs (like the Arctic poppy).

{{see also|List of Arctic cetaceans}}{{Category see also|Fauna of the Arctic|Mammals of the Arctic}}

File:Muskus.jpg]]

File:Snowy Owl Portrait.jpg]]

Herbivores on the tundra include the Arctic hare, lemming, muskox, and reindeer (caribou). They are preyed on by the snowy owl, Arctic fox, grizzly bear, and Arctic wolf. The polar bear is also a predator, though it prefers to hunt for marine life from the ice. There are also many birds and marine species endemic to the colder regions. Other terrestrial animals include wolverines, moose, Dall sheep, ermines, and Arctic ground squirrels. Marine mammals include seals, walruses, and several species of cetacean—baleen whales and also narwhals, orcas, and belugas. An excellent and famous example of a ring species exists and has been described around the Arctic Circle in the form of the Larus gulls.

{{See also|Natural resources of the Arctic|Petroleum exploration in the Arctic}}

There are copious natural resources in the Arctic (oil, gas, minerals, freshwater, fish, and, if the subarctic is included, forest) to which modern technology and the economic opening up of Russia have given significant new opportunities. The interest in the tourism industry is also on the increase.

The Arctic contains some of the last and most extensive continuous wilderness areas in the world, and its significance in preserving biodiversity and genotypes is considerable. The increasing presence of humans fragments vital habitats. The Arctic is particularly susceptible to the abrasion of groundcover and to the disturbance of the rare breeding grounds of the animals that are characteristic of the region. The Arctic also holds 1/5 of the Earth's water supply.{{Cite web |last=Society |first=National Geographic |date=2016-10-06 |title=Arctic |url=http://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/arctic/ |access-date=2020-06-11 |website=National Geographic Society |archive-date=3 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603203627/https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/arctic/ |url-status=live}}

During the Cretaceous period, the Arctic still had seasonal snows, though only a light dusting and not enough to permanently hinder plant growth. Animals such as the Chasmosaurus, Hypacrosaurus, Troodon, and Edmontosaurus may have all migrated north to take advantage of the summer growing season, and migrated south to warmer climes when winter came. A similar situation may also have been found amongst dinosaurs that lived in Antarctic regions, such as the Muttaburrasaurus of Australia.

However, others claim that dinosaurs lived year-round at very high latitudes, such as near the Colville River, which is now at about 70°  N but at the time (70 million years ago) was 10° further north.{{cite journal |title=A paleontologists Alaskan adventure |journal=New Scientist |date=9 June 2012 |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21428686-800-a-palaeontologists-alaskan-adventure/ |access-date=30 March 2022 |archive-date=12 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220412005721/https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21428686-800-a-palaeontologists-alaskan-adventure/ |url-status=live}}

{{Main|Circumpolar peoples}}

{{Further|Indigenous peoples of Siberia|Inuit Circumpolar Council}}

File:Dorset, Norse, and Thule cultures 900-1500.svg and expansion of the Thule from {{circa|900 to 1500}}]]

File:Circumpolar coastal human population distribution ca. 2009.png

The earliest inhabitants of North America's central and eastern Arctic are referred to as the Arctic small tool tradition (AST) and existed {{Circa|2500 BCE}}. AST consisted of several Paleo-Eskimo cultures, including the Independence cultures and Pre-Dorset cultures.{{cite book |last=Hoffecker |first=John F. |title=A prehistory of the north: human settlement of the higher latitudes |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=2005 |page=130 |isbn=978-0-8135-3469-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_rL5F4EAaFkC&pg=PA132 |access-date=24 August 2020 |archive-date=30 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102129/https://books.google.com/books?id=_rL5F4EAaFkC&pg=PA132 |url-status=live}}Gibbon, pp. 28–31 The Dorset culture (Inuktitut: Tuniit or Tunit) refers to the next inhabitants of central and eastern Arctic. The Dorset culture evolved because of technological and economic changes during 1050–550 BCE. With the exception of the Quebec / Labrador peninsula, the Dorset culture vanished around 1500 CE.Gibbon, pp. 216–217 Supported by genetic testing, evidence shows that descendants of the Dorset culture, known as the Sadlermiut, survived in Aivilik, Southampton and Coats Islands, until the beginning of the 20th century.{{cite book |last=McGhee |first=Robert |title=The last imaginary place: a human history of the Arctic world |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2005 |edition=Digitized 7 October 2008 |page=55 |isbn=978-0-19-518368-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NdaAAAAAMAAJ&q=sagdlermiut+genetic |access-date=24 August 2020 |archive-date=30 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102049/https://books.google.com/books?id=NdaAAAAAMAAJ&q=sagdlermiut+genetic |url-status=live}}

The Dorset / Thule culture transition dates around the ninth–10th centuries CE. Scientists theorize that there may have been cross-contact between the two cultures with the sharing of technology, such as fashioning harpoon heads, or the Thule may have found Dorset remnants and adapted their ways with the predecessor culture.Gibbon, p. 218. The evidence suggested that Inuit descend from the Birnirk of Siberia, through the Thule culture expanded into northern Canada and Greenland, where they genetically and culturally completely replaced the Indigenous Dorset people sometime after 1300 CE.{{cite news |title=New Study Offers Clues to Swift Arctic Extinction |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/29/science/study-offers-clues-to-arctic-mystery-paleo-eskimos-abrupt-extinction.html |work=The New York Times |date=August 28, 2014}} The question of why the Dorset disappeared so completely has led some to suggest that Thule invaders wiped out the Dorset people in "an example of prehistoric genocide."{{cite news|title=Dorset DNA: Genes Trace the Tale of the Arctic's Long-Gone 'Hobbits' |date=28 August 2014 |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/dorset-dna-genes-trace-tale-arctics-long-gone-hobbits-n191156|publisher=NBC News}}

By 1300 CE, the Inuit, present-day Arctic inhabitants and descendants of Thule culture, had settled in west Greenland and moved into east Greenland over the following century (Inughuit, Kalaallit and Tunumiit are modern Greenlandic Inuit groups descended from Thule). Over time, the Inuit have migrated throughout the Arctic regions of Eastern Russia, the United States, Canada, and Greenland.{{cite web |url=http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/tresors/ethno/etb0170e.shtml |title=First Nations Culture Areas Index |work=the Canadian Museum of Civilization |access-date=30 December 2009 |archive-date=11 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811033229/http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/tresors/ethno/etb0170e.shtml |url-status=live}}

Other Circumpolar North indigenous peoples include the Chukchi, Evenks, Iñupiat, Khanty, Koryaks, Nenets, Sámi, Yukaghir, Gwichʼin, and Yupik.

{{Main|Arctic cooperation and politics}}

File:Polar bears near north pole.jpgs on the sea ice of the Arctic Ocean, near the North Pole. USS Honolulu pictured.]]

The eight Arctic nations (Canada, Kingdom of Denmark [Greenland & The Faroe Islands], Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Russia, and US) are all members of the Arctic Council, as are organizations representing six indigenous populations (The Aleut International Association, Arctic Athabaskan Council, Gwich'in Council International, Inuit Circumpolar Council, Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, and Saami Council). The council operates on a consensus basis, mostly dealing with environmental treaties and not addressing boundary or resource disputes.

Though Arctic policy priorities differ, every Arctic nation is concerned about sovereignty/defense, resource development, shipping routes, and environmental protection.{{cite journal |first1=Albert |last1=Buixadé Farré |first2=Scott R. |last2=Stephenson |first3=Linling |last3=Chen |first4=Michael |last4=Czub |first5=Ying |last5=Dai |first6=Denis |last6=Demchev |first7=Yaroslav |last7=Efimov |first8=Piotr |last8=Graczyk |first9=Henrik |last9=Grythe |first10=Kathrin |last10=Keil |first11=Niku |last11=Kivekäs |first12=Naresh |last12=Kumar |first13=Nengye |last13=Liu |first14=Igor |last14=Matelenok |first15=Mari |last15=Myksvoll |first16=Derek |last16=O'Leary |first17=Julia |last17=Olsen |first18=Sachin |last18=Pavithran, A. P. |first19=Edward |last19=Petersen |first20=Andreas |last20=Raspotnik |first21=Ivan |last21=Ryzhov |first22=Jan |last22=Solski |first23=Lingling |last23=Suo |first24=Caroline |last24=Troein |first25=Vilena |last25=Valeeva |first26=Jaap |last26=van Rijckevorsel |first27=Jonathan |last27=Wighting |date=16 October 2014 |title=Commercial Arctic shipping through the Northeast Passage: Routes, resources, governance, technology, and infrastructure |journal=Polar Geography |volume=37 |issue=4 |page=298 |doi=10.1080/1088937X.2014.965769 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2014PolGe..37..298B }} Much work remains on regulatory agreements regarding shipping, tourism, and resource development in Arctic waters.{{cite journal |last1=Berkman |first1=Paul |title=Stability and Peace in the Arctic Ocean through Science Diplomacy |journal=Science & Diplomacy |date=23 June 2014 |volume=3 |issue=2 |url=http://www.sciencediplomacy.org/perspective/2014/stability-and-peace-in-arctic-ocean-through-science-diplomacy |access-date=23 June 2014 |archive-date=26 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220426152211/https://www.sciencediplomacy.org/perspective/2014/stability-and-peace-in-arctic-ocean-through-science-diplomacy |url-status=live}} Arctic shipping is subject to some regulatory control through the International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters, adopted by the International Maritime Organization on 1 January 2017 and applies to all ships in Arctic waters over 500 tonnes.{{cite web |url=https://www.imo.org/en/MediaCentre/HotTopics/Pages/Polar-default.aspx |title=Shipping in polar waters |publisher=IMO |access-date=2 August 2021 |archive-date=2 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210802101244/https://www.imo.org/en/MediaCentre/HotTopics/Pages/Polar-default.aspx |url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=https://www.maritime-executive.com/magazine/the-polar-code-one-year-on |title=The Polar Code, One Year On |publisher=The Maritime Executive |access-date=2 August 2021 |archive-date=2 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210802101829/https://www.maritime-executive.com/magazine/the-polar-code-one-year-on |url-status=live}}

Research in the Arctic has long been a collaborative international effort, evidenced by the International Polar Year. The International Arctic Science Committee, hundreds of scientists and specialists of the Arctic Council, and the Barents Euro-Arctic Council are more examples of collaborative international Arctic research.{{cite journal |last=King |first=Lorenz |date=1992 |title=Polarregionen, vom Neuland zum wissenschaftlichen Brennpunkt |trans-title=Polar regions, from uncharted territory to scientific focus |url= |language=German |journal=Giessener Diskurse: Wissenschaft und Neues Weltbild |volume=6/7 |issue= |pages=231–256 |isbn=3-927835-25-0 |doi= |access-date=}}

{{Main|Territorial claims in the Arctic}}

While there are several ongoing territorial claims in the Arctic, no country owns the geographic North Pole or the region of the Arctic Ocean surrounding it. The surrounding six Arctic states that border the Arctic Ocean—Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark (with Greenland), Iceland, Norway, Russia, and the United States—are limited to a {{Convert|200|NM|lk=in}} exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off their coasts. Two Arctic states (Finland and Sweden) do not have direct access to the Arctic Ocean.

Upon ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a country has ten years to make claims to an extended continental shelf beyond its 200 nautical mile zone.{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/annex2.htm |title=United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Annex 2, Article 4) |access-date=26 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070716080502/http://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/annex2.htm |archive-date=16 July 2007 |url-status=live}} Due to this, Norway (which ratified the convention in 1996),{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/Depts/los/reference_files/chronological_lists_of_ratifications.htm |date=22 April 2009 |access-date=30 April 2009 |title=Chronological lists of ratifications of, accessions and successions to the Convention and the related Agreements |publisher=United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414043900/http://www.un.org/depts/los/reference_files/chronological_lists_of_ratifications.htm |archive-date=14 April 2009 |url-status=live}} Russia (ratified in 1997), Canada (ratified in 2003) and the Kingdom of Denmark (ratified in 2004) launched projects to establish claims that certain sectors of the Arctic seabed should belong to their territories.

On 2 August 2007, two Russian bathyscaphes, MIR-1 and MIR-2, for the first time in history descended to the Arctic seabed beneath the North Pole and placed there a Russian flag made of rust-proof titanium alloy. The flag-placing, during Arktika 2007, generated commentary on and concern for a race for control of the Arctic's vast hydrocarbon resources.Yenikeyeff, S. M. and Fenton Krysiek, Timothy (August 2007). [http://www.oxfordenergy.org/wpcms/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Aug2007-TheBattleforthenextenergyfrontier-ShamilYenikeyeff-and-TimothyFentonKrysiek.pdf The Battle for the Next Energy Frontier: The Russian Polar Expedition and the Future of Arctic Hydrocarbons.] Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710021201/http://www.oxfordenergy.org/wpcms/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Aug2007-TheBattleforthenextenergyfrontier-ShamilYenikeyeff-and-TimothyFentonKrysiek.pdf|date=10 July 2011}}

File:Map of the Arctic region showing the Northeast Passage, the Northern Sea Route and Northwest Passage, and bathymetry.png, the Northern Sea Route within it, and the Northwest Passage.]]

Foreign ministers and other officials representing Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the United States met in Ilulissat, Greenland on 28 May 2008 at the Arctic Ocean Conference and announced the Ilulissat Declaration,{{cite news |title=Conference in Ilulissat, Greenland: Landmark political declaration on the future of the Arctic |url=http://www.um.dk/en/servicemenu/news/newsarchives2008/conferenceinilulissatgreenlandlandmarkpoliticaldeclarationonthefutureofthearctic.htm |publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark |date=28 May 2008 |access-date=30 April 2009}}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{cite web |url=http://www.um.dk/NR/rdonlyres/BE00B850-D278-4489-A6BE-6AE230415546/0/ArcticOceanConference.pdf |title=The Ilulissat Declaration |date=28 May 2008 |publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark |access-date=6 June 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080626152700/http://www.um.dk/NR/rdonlyres/BE00B850-D278-4489-A6BE-6AE230415546/0/ArcticOceanConference.pdf |archive-date=26 June 2008 |url-status=dead}} blocking any "new comprehensive international legal regime to govern the Arctic Ocean," and pledging "the orderly settlement of any possible overlapping claims."{{cite news |first=Randy |last=Boswell |title=Conference could mark start of Arctic power struggle |url=http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=d0135cd8-c15a-48a3-9579-0df5f8e185c1 |publisher=canada.com |date=28 May 2008 |access-date=6 June 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304204151/http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=d0135cd8-c15a-48a3-9579-0df5f8e185c1 |archive-date=4 March 2009}}

As of 2012, the Kingdom of Denmark is claiming the continental shelf based on the Lomonosov Ridge between Greenland and over the North Pole to the northern limit of the exclusive economic zone of Russia.{{cite web |url=http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/verden/1.8261208 |title=Dansker vil dokumentere territorialkrav i Arktis |publisher=NRK |language=no |date=28 July 2012 |access-date=15 June 2015 |archive-date=31 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831051058/http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/verden/1.8261208 |url-status=live}}

The Russian Federation is also claiming a large swath of seabed along the Lomonosov Ridge but, unlike Denmark, confined its claim to its side of the Arctic region. In August 2015, Russia made a supplementary submission for the expansion of the external borders of its continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean, asserting that the eastern part of the Lomonosov Ridge and the Mendeleyev Ridge is an extension of the Eurasian continent. In August 2016, the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf began to consider Russia's submission.{{Cite web |url=http://www.maritimeherald.com/2017/russia-claims-the-application-for-expansion-of-danish-borders-in-the-arctic-shelf/ |title=Russia claims the application for expansion of Danish borders in the Arctic shelf |date=2017-01-23 |access-date=22 January 2018 |archive-date=22 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180122125538/http://www.maritimeherald.com/2017/russia-claims-the-application-for-expansion-of-danish-borders-in-the-arctic-shelf/ |url-status=live}}

Canada claims the Northwest Passage as part of its internal waters belonging to Canada, while the United States and most maritime nations{{cite web |author=The Edmonton Journal |url=http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=6d4815ac-4fdb-4cf3-a8a6-4225a8bd08df&k=73925 |url-status=dead |title=Northwest Passage gets political name change |publisher=Canada.com |date=9 April 2006 |access-date=31 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160402114448/http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=6d4815ac-4fdb-4cf3-a8a6-4225a8bd08df&k=73925 |archive-date=2 April 2016}} regards it as an international strait, which means that foreign vessels have right of transit passage.{{cite news |title=The US is picking a fight with Canada over a thawing Arctic shipping route |url=https://qz.com/1653831/the-us-is-picking-a-fight-with-canada-over-an-arctic-shipping-route/ |work=Quartz |date=June 27, 2019 |access-date=20 August 2019 |archive-date=14 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814025007/https://qz.com/1653831/the-us-is-picking-a-fight-with-canada-over-an-arctic-shipping-route/ |url-status=live}}

{{Main|Arctic exploration}}

{{See also|Petroleum exploration in the Arctic}}

Since 1937, the larger portion of the Asian-side Arctic region has been extensively explored by Soviet and Russian crewed drifting ice stations. Between 1937 and 1991, 88 international polar crews established and occupied scientific settlements on the drift ice and were carried thousands of kilometers by the ice flow.{{cite web |url=http://www.whoi.edu/beaufortgyre/history/history_drifting.html |title=North Pole drifting stations (1930s–1980s) |publisher=Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution |access-date=30 April 2009 |archive-date=20 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720113545/http://www.whoi.edu/beaufortgyre/history/history_drifting.html |url-status=live}}

{{main|Pollution in the Arctic Ocean|Arctic haze}}

File:contamination pathways large.jpg

The Arctic is comparatively clean, although there are certain ecologically difficult localized pollution problems that present a serious threat to people's health living around these pollution sources. Due to the prevailing worldwide sea and air currents, the Arctic area is the fallout region for long-range transport pollutants, and in some places, the concentrations exceed the levels of densely populated urban areas. An example of this is the phenomenon of Arctic haze, which is commonly blamed on long-range pollutants. Another example is with the bioaccumulation of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) in Arctic wildlife and people.

{{Main|Save the Arctic}}

There have been many proposals to preserve the Arctic over the years. Most recently a group of states{{clarify|date=February 2024}} at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, on 21 June 2012, proposed protecting the Arctic, similar to the Antarctic Treaty System. The initial focus of the campaign will be a UN resolution creating a global sanctuary around the pole, and a ban on oil drilling and unsustainable fishing in the Arctic.[http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/press/releases/Stars-launch-campaign-to-save-the-Arctic/ Stars launch campaign to save the Arctic] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120627092631/http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/press/releases/Stars-launch-campaign-to-save-the-Arctic/ |date=27 June 2012 }}. Greenpeace (21 June 2012).

The Arctic has climate change rates that are amongst the highest in the world. Due to the major impacts to the region from climate change the near climate future of the region will be extremely different under all scenarios of warming.IPCC. Cross-Chapter Paper 6: Polar Regions. IPCC WGII Sixth Assessment Report. 1 October 2021. https://report.ipcc.ch/ar6wg2/pdf/IPCC_AR6_WGII_CrossChapterPaper6.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220228143954/https://report.ipcc.ch/ar6wg2/pdf/IPCC_AR6_WGII_CrossChapterPaper6.pdf |date=28 February 2022 }}.

{{Main|Climate change in the Arctic}}

File:2007 Arctic Sea Ice.jpg as of 2007 compared to 2005 and compared to 1979–2000 average]]

The effects of climate change in the Arctic include rising temperatures, loss of sea ice, and melting of the Greenland ice sheet. Potential methane release from the region, especially through the thawing of permafrost and methane clathrates, is also a concern.Galera, L. A., Eckhardt, T., Beer, C., Pfeiffer, E.-M., & Knoblauch, C. (2023). "Ratio of in situ CO2 to CH4 production and its environmental controls in polygonal tundra soils of Samoylov Island, Northeastern Siberia". Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, 128, e2022JG006956. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JG006956 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630102551/https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2022JG006956 |date=30 June 2023 }} Because of the amplified response of the Arctic to global warming, it is often seen as a leading indicator of global warming. The melting of Greenland's ice sheet is linked to polar amplification.[http://news.uga.edu/releases/article/study-2015-melting-greenland-ice-faster-arctic-warming-0616/ Study links 2015 melting Greenland ice to faster Arctic warming] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171118204819/http://news.uga.edu/releases/article/study-2015-melting-greenland-ice-faster-arctic-warming-0616/ |date=18 November 2017 }} 9 June 2016 University of Georgia{{cite journal |doi=10.1038/ncomms11723 |pmid=27277547 |pmc=4906163 |volume=7 |title=Arctic cut-off high drives the poleward shift of a new Greenland melting record |journal=Nature Communications |page=11723 |bibcode=2016NatCo...711723T |last1=Tedesco |first1=M. |last2=Mote |first2=T. |last3=Fettweis |first3=X. |last4=Hanna |first4=E. |last5=Jeyaratnam |first5=J. |last6=Booth |first6=J. F. |last7=Datta |first7=R. |last8=Briggs |first8=K. |year=2016}}

The Arctic region is especially vulnerable to the effects of any climate change, as has become apparent with the reduction of sea ice in recent years. Climate models predict much greater climate change in the Arctic than the global average,{{Cite book |title=Impacts of a warming Arctic: Arctic Climate Impact Assessment |url=https://archive.org/details/impactsofwarming0000hass |date=February 2005 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, UK |isbn=978-0-521-61778-9 |access-date=20 November 2006 |df=dmy-all |url-access=registration}} resulting in significant international attention to the region. In particular, there are concerns that Arctic shrinkage, a consequence of melting glaciers and other ice in Greenland, could soon contribute to a substantial rise in sea levels worldwide.Grinberg, Emanuella (17 December 2008). [http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/12/16/melting.ice/index.html "Ice melting across globe at accelerating rate, NASA says."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220330054019/http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/12/16/melting.ice/index.html |date=30 March 2022 }} CNN. Retrieved 30 March 2022

The current Arctic warming is leading to ancient carbon being released from thawing permafrost, leading to methane and carbon dioxide production by micro-organisms.{{Cite journal |last1=Lenton |first1=T. M. |last2=Held |first2=H. |last3=Kriegler |first3=E. |last4=Hall |first4=J. W. |last5=Lucht |first5=W. |last6=Rahmstorf |first6=S. |last7=Schellnhuber |first7=H. J. |doi=10.1073/pnas.0705414105 |title=Inaugural Article: Tipping elements in the Earth's climate system |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |volume=105 |issue=6 |pages=1786–93 |year=2008 |pmid=18258748 |pmc=2538841 |bibcode=2008PNAS..105.1786L |doi-access=free}}{{Cite journal |last=Turetsky |first=Merritt R. |date=2019-04-30 |title=Permafrost collapse is accelerating carbon release |journal=Nature |volume=569 |issue=7754 |pages=32–34 |doi=10.1038/d41586-019-01313-4 |pmid=31040419 |bibcode=2019Natur.569...32T |doi-access=free}} Release of methane and carbon dioxide stored in permafrost could cause abrupt and severe global warming,{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080918192943.htm |title=Abrupt Climate Change Focus Of U.S. National Laboratories |work=Science Daily |date=23 September 2008 |url-status=live |access-date=28 February 2018 |archive-date=23 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170623010338/https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080918192943.htm}} as they are potent greenhouse gases.{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/18/arctic-permafrost-canada-science-climate-crisis |title=Scientists shocked by Arctic permafrost thawing 70 years sooner than predicted |agency=Reuters |date=2019-06-18 |work=The Guardian |access-date=2019-07-02 |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=6 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191006020220/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/18/arctic-permafrost-canada-science-climate-crisis |url-status=live}}

File:Svolvær_Harbor_(15226568739).jpg near Svolvær with mean annual temperature of {{Convert|6|C}}, four months above 10°C and no month below {{Convert|0|C}}.[https://www.yr.no/en/statistics/table/5-85380/Norway/Nordland/V%C3%A5gan/Skrova%20fyr?q=last-13-months Skrova climate statistics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211109172300/https://www.yr.no/en/statistics/table/5-85380/Norway/Nordland/V%C3%A5gan/Skrova%20fyr?q=last-13-months |date=9 November 2021 }}. yr.no. Retrieved 2021-11-09.]]

Climate change is also predicted to have a large impact on tundra vegetation, causing an increase of shrubs,{{Cite journal |last1=Myers-Smith |first1=Isla H. |last2=Forbes |first2=Bruce C. |last3=Wilmking |first3=Martin |last4=Hallinger |first4=Martin |last5=Lantz |first5=Trevor |last6=Blok |first6=Daan |last7=Tape |first7=Ken D. |last8=Macias-Fauria |first8=Marc |last9=Sass-Klaassen |first9=Ute |date=2011-01-01 |title=Shrub expansion in tundra ecosystems: dynamics, impacts and research priorities |journal=Environmental Research Letters |language=en |volume=6 |issue=4 |page=045509 |doi=10.1088/1748-9326/6/4/045509 |issn=1748-9326 |bibcode=2011ERL.....6d5509M |doi-access=free|hdl=10536/DRO/DU:30114246 |hdl-access=free }} and having a negative impact on bryophytes and lichens.{{Cite journal |last1=Alatalo |first1=Juha M. |last2=Jägerbrand |first2=Annika K. |last3=Molau |first3=Ulf |date=2015-11-01 |title=Testing reliability of short-term responses to predict longer-term responses of bryophytes and lichens to environmental change |journal=Ecological Indicators |volume=58 |pages=77–85 |doi=10.1016/j.ecolind.2015.05.050}}

Apart from concerns regarding the detrimental effects of warming in the Arctic, some potential opportunities have gained attention. The melting of the ice is making the Northwest Passage, shipping routes through the northernmost latitudes, more navigable, raising the possibility that the Arctic region will become a prime trade route.[http://archives.cnn.com/2002/TECH/science/08/29/northwest.passage/ "Will ice melt open fabled Northwest Passage?"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071109062759/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/TECH/science/08/29/northwest.passage/ |date=9 November 2007 }} CNN. 29 August 2002. One harbinger of the opening navigability of the Arctic took place in the summer of 2016 when the Crystal Serenity successfully navigated the Northwest Passage, a first for a large cruise ship.{{Cite web |url=http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/09/16/crystal-serenity-docks-in-nyc/ |title=Largest Cruise Ship Ever To Sail Northwest Passage Docks In NYC |access-date=2016-09-24 |date=2016-09-16 |archive-date=27 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160927065229/http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/09/16/crystal-serenity-docks-in-nyc/ |url-status=live}}

In addition, it is believed that the Arctic seabed may contain substantial oil fields which may become accessible if the ice covering them melts.Demos, Telis. [https://money.cnn.com/2007/08/07/news/international/arctic_oil.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2007080810 "The great Arctic Circle oil rush."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200918134845/https://money.cnn.com/2007/08/07/news/international/arctic_oil.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2007080810 |date=18 September 2020 }} CNN. 8 August 2007. These factors have led to recent international debates as to which nations can claim sovereignty or ownership over the waters of the Arctic.Shaw, Rob. [http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=497c719f-a5be-4691-86f4-30ec877101a7&k=77 "New patrol ships will reassert northern sovereignty: PM".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929213616/http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=497c719f-a5be-4691-86f4-30ec877101a7&k=77 |date=29 September 2007 }} Victoria Times Colonist. 9 July 2007.Halpin, Tony. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article2155477.ece "Russia stakes its claim the North Pole in the underwater search for oil".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007151839/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article2155477.ece |date=7 October 2008 }} The Times. 28 July 2007.{{cite news |title=Arctic melt stuns scientists |work=CBS News |date=9 October 2007 |url=http://www.webcastr.com/videos/news/arctic-melt-stuns-scientists.html}}{{dead link|date=July 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{cite news |url=http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=d0135cd8-c15a-48a3-9579-0df5f8e185c1 |title=Conference could mark start of Arctic power struggle |publisher=Canada.com |date=28 May 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304204151/http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=d0135cd8-c15a-48a3-9579-0df5f8e185c1 |archive-date=4 March 2009}}

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Arctic Ocean
• Baffin Bay
• Beaufort Sea
• Barents Sea
• Bering Sea
• Bering Strait
• Chukchi Sea
• Davis Strait
• Denmark Strait
• East Siberian Sea
• Greenland Sea
• Hudson Bay
• Kara Sea
• Laptev Sea
• Nares Strait
• Norwegian Sea

{{div col end}}

File:Plane buzzes Pangnirtung.jpg, Nunavut]]

File:Salliaruseq-uummannaq-aerial.jpg, Greenland]]

File:Стойбище ненцев.jpg reindeer herders in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug]]

File:The bush village of Kotzebue, gateway to Kobuk Valley (8029761188).jpg]]

File: Photographing Murmansk from Omni Hotel Murmansk.jpg on Russia's Kola Peninsula is the largest city in the world north of the Arctic Circle.]]

{{Clear}}

{{Portal|Geography}}

• Arctic ecology
• Arctic Search and Rescue Agreement
• List of countries by northernmost point
• Arctic sanctuary
• Poverty in the Arctic
• Arctic Winter Games
• Winter City
• Global North

{{reflist|group="Note"}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book |last=Gibbon |first=Guy E. |author2=Kenneth M. Ames |title=Archaeology of prehistoric native America: an encyclopedia |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=1998 |volume=1537 of Garland reference library of the humanities |isbn=978-0-8153-0725-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_0u2y_SVnmoC&pg=PA29}}

• Brian W. Coad, James D. Reist. (2017). Marine Fishes of Arctic Canada. University of Toronto Press. {{ISBN|978-1-4426-4710-7}}
• [https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/bitstream/handle/2142/15118/Global-Security-Climate-Change-and-the-Arctic.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y "Global Security, Climate Change, and the Arctic"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229052231/https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/bitstream/handle/2142/15118/Global-Security-Climate-Change-and-the-Arctic.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y |date=29 December 2017 }} – 24-page special journal issue (Fall 2009), Swords and Ploughshares, Program in Arms Control, Disarmament, and International Security (ACDIS), University of Illinois
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20050403172540/http://globio.info/region/polar/#arctic GLOBIO Human Impact maps] Report on human impacts on the Arctic
• Krupnik, Igor, Michael A. Lang, and Scott E. Miller, eds. [http://www.sil.si.edu/smithsoniancontributions/proceedings/sc_RecordSingle.cfm?series=IPY&toplevel=1 Smithsonian at the Poles: Contributions to International Polar Year Science.] Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, 2009.
• [https://archive.today/20141017071519/http://mesharpe.metapress.com/content/r500076153444737/?id=R500076153444737/ Konyshev, Valery & Sergunin, Alexander: The Arctic at the Crossroads of Geopolitical Interests] Russian Politics and Law, 2012, Vol.50, No.2, pp. 34–54
• [http://www.fiia.fi/en/publication/347/the_global_arctic/ Käpylä, Juha & Mikkola, Harri: The Global Arctic: The Growing Arctic Interests of Russia, China, the United States and the European Union] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130915062320/http://www.fiia.fi/en/publication/347/the_global_arctic/ |date=15 September 2013 }} FIIA Briefing Paper 133, August 2013, [http://www.fiia.fi/en/ The Finnish Institute of International Affairs].
• [http://www.hse.ru/pubs/lib/data/access/ram/ticket/29/1415622628fb17e452d635132e55826454dba690db/The%20Arctic%20at%20the%20crossroads%20of%20geopolitical%20interests.pdf Konyshev, Valery & Sergunin, Alexander. The Arctic at the crossroads of geopolitical interests // Russian Politics and Law, 2012. Vol. 50, No. 2. p. 34–54]
• [http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14751798.2014.948276#.VEC8BLkcSpo/ Konyshev, Valery & Sergunin, Alexander: Is Russia a revisionist military power in the Arctic?] Defense & Security Analysis, September 2014.
• [http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/2154896X.2014.913930#.VEDDnrkcSpo/ Konyshev, Valery & Sergunin, Alexander. Russia in search of its Arctic strategy: between hard and soft power?] Polar Journal, April 2014.
• McCannon, John. A History of the Arctic: Nature, Exploration and Exploitation. Reaktion Books and University of Chicago Press, 2012. {{ISBN|9781780230184}}
• {{cite book |last1=O'Rourke |first1=Ronald |title=Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress |date=14 October 2016 |publisher=Congressional Research Service |location=Washington, DC |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41153.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41153.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=20 October 2016}}
• {{cite book |last=Sperry |first=Armstrong |author-link=Armstrong Sperry |title=All About the Arctic and Antarctic |url=https://archive.org/details/allaboutarcticansper |url-access=registration |year=1957 |publisher=Random House |lccn=57007518}}

{{Sister project links|voy=Arctic|d=Q25322|n=Category:Arctic|b=no|v=no}}

• [http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/Report-Card Arctic Report Card]
• [https://www.arcticcentre.org/Blossoming-Arctic Blossoming Arctic]
• [http://www.iarc.uaf.edu/ International Arctic Research Center]

{{Arctic topics|state=expanded}}

{{Deserts}}

{{Polar exploration}}

{{Regions of the world}}

{{Polar regions}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Geography of North America

Category:Geography of Northeast Asia

Category:Geography of Europe

Category:Geography of Siberia

Category:Polar regions of the Earth