The Northern Climate Observer

The Northern
Climate Observer

Ocean Signals - During the summer of 2019, residents of the Bering Strait region in Alaska were alarmed by the many die-offs that accrued through the summer. The consequences could be seen through the entire span of the marine food chain, from krill and small fish to seabirds and marine mammals. It was an 'ecosystem scale' event, and a chilling signal of change in the northern marine environment. This week another ecosystem scale event generated headlines across the North. Surfers reported that there was something polluting the waters off Khalaktyrsky Beach, just north of Petropavlovsk. More evidence soon washed up including a wide array of invertebrates and fish. You can read about this event as well as stories from beaches in Okinawa Japan and Sooke British Columbia. Mike Brubaker - Editor

	Eco disaster at Kamchatka peninsula with mass death of sea animals at precious Pacific beach Khalaktyrsky Beach Siberian Times / October 3, 2020 Khalaktyrsky Beach near Petropavlovsk is littered with hundreds of dead sea animals, from deep-sea Giant Pacific octopuses, to seals, sea urchins, stars, crabs and fish. Surfers were the first to raise alarm after problems with eyesight, fevers and throat aches. Read article on Siberian Times
	Debris from 3/11 disaster now washing ashore across Okinawa Naha, Okinawa, Japan The Asahi Shimbun / October 3, 2020 Plastic containers washed out to sea after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster are starting to wash up on the shores of Okinawa Prefecture, leaving residents puzzled at the time it took for the items to travel just 2,000 kilometers. Read article on The Asahi Shimbun
	Rare King-of-the-salmon fish found on Vancouver Island Sooke, British Columbia, Canada Adam Chan / CTV News - Vancouver Island / September 30, 2020 A rare deep-sea fish was discovered on Vancouver Island this month. A pair of friends, Natalie Mueller and Andie Lafrentz, were walking along Whiffin Spit in Sooke on Sept. 19 when they spotted what they first thought was a “large piece of scrap metal.” Read article on CTV News - Vancouver Island
	After record-warm summer in Svalbard, extreme meltdown on the glacier Austre Brøggerbreen, Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen Eivind Molde / NRK / September 28, 2020 When glaciologist Jack Kohler returned to Austre Brøggerbreen in Svalbard, he was shocked. More than three meters of the ice at the glacier front had melted away. That's a record. And an ice tunnel had become a trench. Read article on NRK
	Worst plum season in 60 years Lofthus, Hordaland, Norway Tale Hauso, Jon Bolstad, Sjur Mikal Dolve / NRK / October 5, 2020 "It almost snowed when it was flowering. The bees were barely out, and we see the result of that here," said fruit farmer Kari Lutro. The decline for plums is as much as 90 percent, compared with last year. Read article on NRK
	Badger on the Finnmark plateau: – very strange, but also very fun Čuonjájávri, Kautokeino, Norway Marie Elise Nystad, Tom Stian Tretnes Hansen / NRK / September 25, 2020 Odd Arne Hætta thought his dog Leo had found an elk, but it turned out to be something else entirely. Badgers are not common so far north but, sporadic cases have been observed in the past, including in Skibotn in Troms. Read article on NRK
	Lots of Late Blooming Roses (Rosa acicularis) Ester, Alaska, United States Daisy Huang / LEO Network / October 1, 2020 Wild roses usually bloom in May and June, but warm fall temperatures may have signaled roses in Fairbanks to bloom later than usual. Read post on the LEO Network

The Northern Climate Observer is published by the Center for Climate and Health. We track news coverage from across the circumpolar north and provide readers with a curated roundup of climate change related events. Thank you for reading our newsletter and for paying attention to our changing world.

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Northern Climate Observer

The Northern Climate Observer is published weekly by the Center for Climate and Health. We track news from across the circumpolar north and provide readers with a curated roundup of climate change related events.

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Northern Climate Observer

The Northern
Climate Observer