A comprehensive modeling study shows how subglacial meltwater triggers an additional summer bloom of phytoplankton in Disko Bay. At the same time, the climate-relevant carbon sequestration increases only slightly. Ocean currents around North America and Greenland in a NASA ECCO data visualization. S
The Polar Retrospective looks at recent stories from around the world’s polar regions. This week we take a look at new regulations on subantarctic islands for visitors, the solution to a 66-year old Antarctic mystery, and a grim outlook for reindeer populations due to the changing climate.The changi
From September to December, a research team from Australian Antarctic Programs will be deployed on the sub-Antarctic island at 53 degrees south to assess the health of animal populations.King penguins on Heard Island. Image: Stephen Brown / Australian Antarctic Program Australia is bracing itself fo
Revealing a surprising diversity of ancient species just after the mass extinction that ended the age of dinosaurs, new fossil discoveries from North Canterbury in New Zealand show how early penguins developed powerful underwater adaptations and long, spear-like beaks. The findings affirm New Zealan
In Canada’s Yukon, the Tintina Fault has the potential for an earthquake exceeding magnitude 7.5. Dawson City lies dangerously close to the epicentre and could be severely affected by the shaking. The Tintina Fault is barely visible in Yukon’s landscape. Image: created with AI (ChatGPT) A research t
The Polar Retrospective looks at recent stories from around the world’s polar regions. This week we take a look at a new map of Alexander Island, a new Canadian inuit-owned fishing vessel, and a new viral threat for Arctic foxes on Svalbard. The Polar Retrospective is a collaborative effort by the e
DNA analysis of 75,000-year-old bones in Norwegian Arctic caves reveals how ancient animal communities adapted to periods of warming and cooling, providing insights into how modern wildlife might react to current climate change. Samuel Walker, Bournemouth University and Sanne Boessenkool, University
As global warming profoundly transforms Arctic ecosystems, a new study reveals that lakes at high latitudes may be releasing more methane than previously thought. This greenhouse gas, far more potent than CO₂, is produced in the sediments of lakes that have become more biologically productive. A wor
For nearly 30 years, an Australian observatory in the Southern Ocean has delivered crucial long-term data on carbon uptake, ecosystem change and climate trends, and its role is becoming more important than ever. A long-running observatory in the Southern Ocean has been collecting data for nearly 30
New research shows that the success of Marine Protected Areas hinges on strict enforcement, a principle facing major geopolitical and ecological challenges in the planned sanctuaries of the Arctic and Antarctic. Two major studies arrive at seemingly opposite conclusions about the effectiveness of Ma
During a winter field mission in February 2025, an international team of researchers was confronted with above-freezing temperatures, persistent rainfall, and widespread melting across the Svalbard archipelago. An anomaly that has become routine in an Arctic where winter, once reliably harsh, is giv
Mila Zinkova, an independent atmospheric scientist, has just published a study in the journal Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research that pays tribute to the Terra Nova expedition. She suggests that the captain and his crew, returning from the South Pole, may well have been caught in a nine-day snow
Researchers explored how the Māori lunar and environmental calendar, Maramataka, could help track environmental changes in Antarctica by observing natural signs like snow types and animal behavior. By connecting mātauranga Māori with Western science, they revealed new ways of understanding the polar
We’ve almost forgotten it, but Wordie wasn’t always a bay: it was once an ice shelf, and its slow disappearance is a textbook example of the powerful phenomenon of glacier collapse at work in Antarctica.The calving front of Fleming Glacier, which once fed the Wordie Ice Shelf before it collapsed. Im
While the Earth endured icy millions of years, early life may have survived near the equator, according to a new study of microorganisms in Antarctic meltwater ponds.Meltwater ponds on the McMurdo Ice Shelf in East Antarctica. Photo: Ian Hawes, University of Waikato The Antarctic is once again provi
For nearly a thousand years, Greenlandic sled dogs, or Qimmit, have accompanied Inuit communities across the frozen expanses of the Arctic. A recent genetic study reveals the ancient origins, regional diversity, and cultural importance of these four-legged companions A symbol of the Arctic, the sled
The Thwaites Glacier is living out its last years of stability: the disintegration of its floating shelf has begun. As spectators of a predicted collapse, we witness the countdown of a colossus whose melting could raise the oceans by 65 centimetres. The icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer at the edge of
The Polar Retrospective looks at recent stories from around the world’s polar regions. This week we take a look at the impact of an NASA backed citizen science project in Antarctica, the increase in toxins levels in the Alaskan Arctic, and melting glaciers that might trigger more volcanoes eruptions
A 2024 study claimed Antarctica's peninsula is rapidly "greening." However, two new papers challenge this and open a debate of how dramatically Antarctic science should be communicated. A striking headline emerged from a 2024 study in Nature Geoscience: the Antarctic Peninsula is undergoing a widesp
No sooner has the emperor penguin begun to reveal its secrets than it’s already disappearing. Beacon of a climate in crisis, this emblematic Antarctic bird could disappear before we even get to know it. The emperor penguin(Aptenodytes forsteri) lives exclusively around Antarctica and is distinguishe
Melting glaciers, tipping points, sea ice in distress. The Antarctic continent is not doing well in the face of climate change. Yet, the scientific research, as crucial it is to undersand the different implied phenomenons, is declining in number. Photo: Julia HagerDespite accelerating climate impact
A new study has confirmed that a slice of crust in northern Canada is the oldest on record, solidifying the Arctic region's reputation as a unique window into Earth's fiery birth. The vast, remote landscapes of the global north are a treasure trove for geologists, holding some of the rarest and olde
The more we learn about orcas, the more remarkable they are. These giant dolphins are the ocean’s true apex predator, preying on great white sharks and other lesser predators.Orcas are remarakble in many ways and fascinate everyone. Image: Michael WengerVanessa Pirotta, Macquarie UniversityThey’re v
Never-before-seen images filmed in Antarctica show traces of anchoring on a deep, untouched seabed. Without concluding that there is a definite impact, a study invites us to consider the potential effects of human activities on these fragile ecosystems. Giant sponge and anemones 230 m beneath the ic
