Background Articles

A new study finds that polar bears in Svalbard are beginning to leave their dens with cubs one week earlier than before 2016, a trend that may be linked to climate change and the resulting loss of sea ice.

In recent years, researchers have documented salmon surviving in North Slope rivers, bowhead whales expanding their foraging grounds and humpbacks moving into the Arctic.

Scant snow is giving way to shaggy brown grass normally not seen until spring breakup, raising concerns now that conditions are increasingly ripe for a fast-moving fire at a time of year usually deep in the grip of winter.