Background Articles

For centuries, nomads have herded livestock on the Mongolian steppe. Today, Mongolians are proud of their nomadic heritage, but globalisation and climate change are transforming the steppes and nomadic traditions. How Mongolia adapts to these new forces sweeping the steppes will determine the country’s future.

A scientific paper published recently hints at how increasing winter rainfall will affect the Arctic muskox. An N.W.T. biologist says winter rain isn't good for the mammal, but it's actually warmer summers that could prove detrimental.

Average number of days with heavy rain or snow across Canada has been outside norm since spring 2013

Researchers reveal why Arctic sea ice began to melt in the middle of winter two years ago -- and that the increased melting of ice in summer is linked to recurring periods of fair weather.

The warmth of the Bering Sea in 2016 was unprecedented in the historical record, and the warmth of the GOA nearly so. The FAR values Fig. 8.2. Normalized anomalies of (a) heat content and (b) SSTs for the present (black) and preindustrial (blue) climate of the GOA (circle and plus) and Bering Sea (triangle and x) regions from the five model ensembles. Anomalies exceeding 2016 value are in red (shapes as indicated), and the ensemble/region means are shown by the solid lines. Mean probability distributions (%) of (c) heat content and (d) SSTs from the model ensembles; solid (open) circles indicate present (preindustrial) climate for the GOA (blue) and Bering Sea (red). Spread of individual models is shown by the smaller, corresponding open/closed circles. Dashed vertical lines show the 2016 anomalies: GOA (blue), Bering Sea (red). AMERICAN METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY JANUARY 2018 | S43 based on an ensemble of five global climate models indicate that the 2016 warm ocean anomalies cannot be explained without anthropogenic climate warming, although the region’s large internal variability was also a contributing factor (Fig. 8.1 and online supplement material). A strong El Niño with a positive PDO (warm) phase, together with preconditioning of the waters during 2014/15 and the anomalous atmospheric circulation of early 2016, made for a “perfect storm” of marine heating around Alaska. Both anthropogenic forcing and internal variability were necessary for the extreme warmth of the subarctic seas. Our conclusions are consistent with and extend previous findings concerning the 2014 warm SST anomalies in the northeast Pacific (Weller et al. 2015). Additionally, the trajectory of the present climate with RCP8.5 indicates that SST and HC extreme anomalies like 2016 will become common in the coming decades. Given the many impacts of the 2016 anomaly, the future climate projected here will result in a profound shift for people, systems, and species when such warm ocean temperatures become common and not extreme in the GOA and Bering regions.

Climate warming is likely to bring more episodes of heavy rain, above-freezing winter thaws and scorching hot summer days in the coming decades, says a study by scientists at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

The whales seem to have died from starvation and washed up on shore from California to Alaska

A new report breaks down climate impacts on health by US region

Some farmers in the United States and Canada have noticed that the quantity and quality of their maple syrup is changing with climate variability. Now researchers who are investigating these observations.

If you're wondering why British Columbia experienced such a mild winter and early spring, you could maybe blame it on a mysterious "blob" of warm water in the Pacific Ocean.

Since 1976, the distribution of molting Black Brant ( Branta bernicla nigricans ) on the Arctic Coastal Plain has shifted from inland freshwater lakes to coastal marshes, such as those occupying the Smith River and Garry Creek estuaries.

Ice skating on Goodacre Lake in Beacon Hill Park was a common winter pleasure in the past. Generations of Victorians glided under the Stone Bridge on natural ice and circled the islands in the moonlight.

Living conditions and economic development in the face of climate change are the challenges the Arctic Council needs to deal with. Resource development is important to the people.

Medvedev used an inhaler during a second-set changeover Wednesday while being looked at by a doctor, who checked his breathing with a stethoscope.

A squall that dropped barely an inch of snow Friday morning added just enough accumulation to make this the snowiest November in Anchorage since recordkeeping began in 1953. The National Weather Service measured 1.1 inches at the agency’s Sand Lake offices between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., according to meteorologist Kristine Chen. That puts the total snow accumulation at 39.1 inches, narrowly surpassing the 1994 total of 38.8 inches, she said.

As atmospheric scientists, we found in a recent study that thawing permafrost contains lots of microscopic ice-nucleating particles. These particles make it easier for water droplets to freeze; and if the ones in permafrost get airborne, they could affect Arctic clouds.

The temporary repairs would consume about 60% of the town’s annual budget for contract work on roads, a Girdwood official said.

Ben Rich looks back at a month in which an air frost has been seen somewhere in the UK every single morning. In fact, provisional data from the Met Office suggests it has been the frostiest April for at least 60 years - with the lowest average minimum temperatures since 1922.

Drought, economic collapse and soaring food prices have pushed millions into hunger. Cash aid from the Disasters Emergency Committee is helping families feed their children and send them back to school

Arctic soil microbes in Svalbard are equipped with enzymes to degrade carbon compounds and can adapt to climate change, potentially affecting CO2 emissions feedback loops.