Background Articles

Mayors of power municipalities in Norway want new industry in the villages where electricity is produced, instead of sending it away to the city. Local power is very efficient.

The arctic fox population across the Nordic region has declined for decades, but recent data suggests cross-border cooperation between Finland, Norway and Sweden is helping turn things around. Arctic Fox dens and cub population is highest in all three countries.

The state-owned Swedish mining company LKAB says it has found a deposits containing more than one million tons of rare earth oxides near Kiruna in Northern Sweden.

Language supported by the AVMA in new legislation will coordinate federal activities aimed at combating zoonotic disease outbreaks. The measure was among other provisions relevant to animal health that Congress passed before the end of the 2022.

Avian flu outbreak in Washington prompts cull of over 1 million eggs. This has led to a shortage of eggs in urbans areas such as Anchorage and rural communities in Alaska. The egg-shortage adds to the Covid-19 supply chain issues.

The Yukon, the N.W.T. and western Nunavut are experiencing above-average temperatures. According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, it's going to stay that way for the month of January.

Climatologist Rick Thoman says climate change is driving this more extreme winter snowfall. As the oceans warm, more moisture evaporates into the air. Then, when the atmospheric conditions are right for a storm, that increased evaporation results in “heavier and heavier precipitation,” Thoman said. That’s in part why Anchorage saw 41.2 inches of snow last month, capping off its wettest year on record, according to the National Weather Service.

Streams in Alaska are turning orange with iron and sulfuric acid. Scientists are trying to figure out why

Warming soils beneath Utqiagvik are triggering erosion that threatens homes, infrastructure and cultural resources. The North Slope has seen some of the fastest changes in coastal erosion in the nation.

City officials say crews have made progress. But there are challenges. Crews are currently focused on hauling snow from main streets that are near schools, said Kohlhase’s Thursday email. He said he hopes to get every school cleared by the time classes resume on Monday, Jan. 9.

For the first time in decades, Yukon's Finlayson caribou herd appears to be growing in number. That's according to recent population survey data from the territorial government.

Underwater forests, such as kelp forests, have been found to cover a large area and have the potential to absorb significant amounts of carbon dioxide, making them important in addressing the climate crisis, although more research is needed to understand their long-term carbon sequestration capabilities.

Alaska’s Western Arctic Caribou Herd population is lower than at any time in over four decades. Climate change is the leading cause of the decline in the herd.

The Arctic Sounder - Serving the Northwest Arctic and the North Slope

Three temperature records this week were broken in Chukotka. Forecasters recorded abnormally high temperatures for this time of year in Pevek and Omolon.

Dozens of once crystal-clear streams and rivers in Arctic Alaska are now running bright orange and cloudy, and, in some cases, they may be becoming more acidic. This otherwise undeveloped landscape now looks as if an industrial mine has been in operation for decades, and scientists want to know why.

The North Slope offers a marginal place for a moose because far fewer willow shrubs grow there than in the boreal forest. Moose are recent invaders of the North Slope due to climate warming and expanding willow growth.

Alaska’s longest and most popular hunting season ended early this year. The Delta Junction bison hunt usually extends from October to March, but the state limited this year’s season to just two weeks, and only 50 animals were taken, because last winter’s heavy snow and ice buildup wiped out nearly a third of the Delta bison herd.

The Arctic hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk, N.W.T., is collapsing into the ocean as it loses up to a meter of coastline each year. The people who live there are in a race against time to preserve their way of life — and their community — before it is washed away.

Garbage and wood were removed by the municipal services of the village of Rytkuchi of the Pevek urban district from the coastline and tundra near the settlement. This was the final stage of a large-scale clean-up, which began in the summer after a strong storm.