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Location of the Arctic
Artificially coloured topographical map of the Arctic region
MODIS image of the Arctic
Arctic countries based on countries or countries territories bordering the Arctic Circle
The nations which comprise the Arctic region.

The Arctic (/ˈɑːrktɪk/ or /ˈɑːrtɪk/)[1][Note 1] is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Alaska (United States), Canada, Finland, Greenland (Denmark), Iceland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden. Land within the Arctic region has seasonally varying snow and ice cover, with predominantly treeless permafrost-containing tundra. Arctic seas contain seasonal sea ice in many places.

The Arctic region is a unique area among Earth's ecosystems. For example, the cultures in the region and the Arctic indigenous peoples have adapted to its cold and extreme conditions. In recent years, Arctic sea ice decline has been caused by global warming.[3][4] Life in the Arctic includes organisms living in the ice, zooplankton and phytoplankton, fish and marine mammals, birds, land animals, plants and human societies.[5] Arctic land is bordered by the subarctic.

Definition and etymology[edit]

The word Arctic comes from the Greek word ἀρκτικός (arktikos), "near the Bear, northern"[6] and that from the word ἄρκτος (arktos), meaning bear.[7] The name refers either to the constellation Ursa Major, the "Great Bear", which is prominent in the northern portion of the celestial sphere, or to the constellation Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear", which contains Polaris, the Pole star, also known as the North Star.[8]

There are a number of definitions of what area is contained within the Arctic. The area can be defined as north of the Arctic Circle (66° 33'N), the approximate southern limit of the midnight sun and the polar night. Another definition of the Arctic is the region where the average temperature for the warmest month (July) is below 10 °C (50 °F); the northernmost tree line roughly follows the isotherm at the boundary of this region.[9][10]


The Arctic's climate is characterized by cold winters and cool summers. Its precipitation mostly comes in the form of snow and is low, with most of the area receiving less than 50 cm (20 in). High winds often stir up snow, creating the illusion of continuous snowfall. Average winter temperatures can be as low as −40 °C (−40 °F), and the coldest recorded temperature is approximately −68 °C (−90 °F). Coastal Arctic climates are moderated by oceanic influences, having generally warmer temperatures and heavier snowfalls than the colder and drier interior areas. The Arctic is affected by current global warming, leading to Arctic sea ice shrinkage, diminished ice in the Greenland ice sheet, and Arctic methane release as the permafrost thaws.


Flora and fauna[edit]

Arctic life is characterized by adaptation to short growing seasons with long periods of sunlight, and to cold, dark, snow-covered winter conditions.


Arctic poppy among rocks.jpg



Herbivores on the tundra include the Arctic hare, lemming, muskox, and caribou. They are preyed on by the snowy owl, Arctic fox, Grizzly bear, and wolf. The polar bear is also a predator, though it prefers to hunt for marine life from the ice. There are also many birds and marine species endemic to the colder regions. Other land animals include wolverines, ermines, and Arctic ground squirrels. Marine mammals include seals, walrus, and several species of cetaceanbaleen whales and also narwhals, killer whales and belugas. An excellent and famous example of a ring species exists and has been described around the arctic circle in the form of the Larus gulls.

Natural resources[edit]


The Arctic contains some of the last and most extensive continuous wilderness areas in the world, and its significance in preserving biodiversity and genotypes is considerable. The increasing presence of humans fragments vital habitats. The Arctic is particularly susceptible to the abrasion of groundcover and to the disturbance of the rare breeding grounds of the animals that are characteristic to the region. The Arctic also holds 1/5 of the Earth's water supply.[citation needed]


During the Cretaceous time period, the Arctic still had seasonal snows, though only a light dusting and not enough to permanently hinder plant growth.[citation needed] Animals such as the Chasmosaurus, Hypacrosaurus, Troodon, and Edmontosaurus may have all migrated north to take advantage of the summer growing season, and migrated south to warmer climes when the winter came. A similar situation may also have been found amongst dinosaurs that lived in Antarctic regions, such as the Muttaburrasaurus of Australia.

However, others claim that dinosaurs lived year-round at very high latitudes, such as near the Colville River, which is now at about 70° N but at the time (70 million years ago) was 10° further north.[12]

Indigenous population[edit]

Circumpolar coastal human population distribution c. 2009 (includes indigenous and non-indigenous).
Main article: Circumpolar peoples

The earliest inhabitants of North America's central and eastern Arctic are referred to as the Arctic small tool tradition (AST) and existed c. 2500 BC. AST consisted of several Paleo-Eskimo cultures, including the Independence cultures and Pre-Dorset culture.[13][14] The Dorset culture (Inuktitut: Tuniit or Tunit) refers to the next inhabitants of central and eastern Arctic. The Dorset culture evolved because of technological and economic changes during the period of 1050–550 BC. With the exception of the Quebec/Labrador peninsula, the Dorset culture vanished around 1500 AD.[15] Supported by genetic testing, evidence shows that descendants of the Dorset culture, known as the Sadlermiut, survived in Aivilik, Southampton and Coats Islands, until the beginning of the 20th century.[16]


Other Circumpolar North indigenous peoples include the Buryat, Chukchi, Evenks, Inupiat, Khanty, Koryaks, Nenets, Sami, Yukaghir, Gwich'in, and Yupik. The Yupik still refer to themselves as Eskimo, which means "snowshoe netters", not "raw meat eaters" as it is sometimes mistakenly translated.[19]

International cooperation and politics[edit]



Though Arctic policy priorities differ, every Arctic nation is concerned about sovereignty/defense, resource development, shipping routes, and environmental protection.[20] Much work remains on regulatory agreements regarding shipping, tourism, and resource development in Arctic waters.[21]

Research in the Arctic has long been a collaborative international effort, evidenced by the International Polar Year. The International Arctic Science Committee, hundreds of scientists and specialists of the Arctic Council, and the Barents Euro-Arctic Council are more examples of collaborative international Arctic research.

Territorial claims[edit]

No country owns the geographic North Pole or the region of the Arctic Ocean surrounding it. The surrounding six Arctic states that border the Arctic Ocean—Canada, Denmark (via Greenland), Iceland, Norway, Russia, and the United States—are limited to a 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off their coasts. Two Arctic states (Finland and Sweden) do not have direct access to the Arctic Ocean.

Upon ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a country has ten years to make claims to an extended continental shelf beyond its 200 nautical mile zone.[20][22] Due to this, Norway (which ratified the convention in 1996),[23] Russia (ratified in 1997),[23] Canada (ratified in 2003)[23] and Denmark (ratified in 2004)[23] launched projects to establish claims that certain sectors of the Arctic seabed should belong to their territories.

On 2 August 2007, two Russian bathyscaphes, MIR-1 and MIR-2, for the first time in history descended to the Arctic seabed beneath the North Pole and placed there a Russian flag made of rust-proof titanium alloy. The mission was a scientific expedition, but the flag-placing during Arktika 2007 generated commentary on and concern for a race for control of the Arctic's vast hydrocarbon resources.[24]

Foreign ministers and other officials representing Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the United States met in Ilulissat, Greenland on 28 May 2008 at the Arctic Ocean Conference and announced the Ilulissat Declaration,[25][26] blocking any "new comprehensive international legal regime to govern the Arctic Ocean," and pledging "the orderly settlement of any possible overlapping claims."[20][27]

As of 2012, Denmark is claiming the continental shelf between Greenland and the North Pole.[28] The Russian Federation is claiming a large swath of seabed along the Lomonosov Ridge but confined to its sector of the Arctic.


Main article: Arctic exploration

Since 1937, the larger portion of the Asian-side Arctic region has been extensively explored by Soviet and Russian manned drifting ice stations. Between 1937 and 1991, 88 international polar crews established and occupied scientific settlements on the drift ice and were carried thousands of kilometers by the ice flow.[29]


Long-range pollution pathways to the Arctic



Main article: Save the Arctic

There have been many proposals to preserve the Arctic over the years. Most recently a group of stars at the Rio Earth Summit, on 21 June 2012, proposed protecting the Arctic, similar to the Antarctic protection. The initial focus of the campaign will be a UN resolution creating a global sanctuary around the pole, and a ban on oil drilling and unsustainable fishing in the Arctic.[30]

Global warming[edit]

The effects of global warming in the Arctic include rising temperatures, loss of sea ice, and melting of the Greenland ice sheet. Potential methane release from the region, especially through the thawing of permafrost and methane clathrates, is also a concern. Because of the amplified response of the Arctic to global warming, it is often seen as a leading indicator of global warming. The melting of Greenland's ice sheet is linked to polar amplification.[31][32]

According to research in 2016 with the current emission cuts, the Arctic will lose all its ice in summer within ca 20 years since the average westerner’s carbon emissions destroy 30 square metres of Arctic sea ice every year.[33]

The development of Arctic sea ice area as measured with satellites.[34]

The Arctic is especially vulnerable to the effects of any climate change, as has become apparent with the reduction of sea ice in recent years. Climate models predict much greater warming in the Arctic than the global average,[36] resulting in significant international attention to the region. In particular, there are concerns that Arctic shrinkage, a consequence of melting glaciers and other ice in Greenland, could soon contribute to a substantial rise in sea levels worldwide.[37] The climate models on which the IPCC report Number 4 is based give a range of predictions of Arctic sea ice loss, showing near-complete to complete loss in September anywhere from 2040 to some time well beyond 2100. About half of the analyzed models show near-complete to complete sea ice loss in September by the year 2100.[3] More recently, the Catlin Arctic Survey concluded that summer ice loss would occur around 2029.[38][39] It has been apparent though since 2007, that those models grossly underestimate sea ice loss.[40]

As can be seen in the two plot at the right, since about 1995 to 2000, by all three measures (extent, area and volume), the Arctic sea ice shield is decreasing. This downward movement is modulated by statistical variations. Particular media attention occurs when a new record has been reached.



The current Arctic warming is leading to fears of ancient carbon being released from thawing permafrost, leading to methane and carbon dioxide production by micro-organisms.[44] Release of methane and carbon dioxide stored in permafrost could cause abrupt and severe global warming,[45] as they are potent greenhouse gases. However, the impact of climate change on soil carbon and nutrients may vary on local scale.[46] On millennial time-scales, decomposition of methane hydrates in the Arctic seabed might also amplify global warming.[citation needed] Previous methane release events have been linked to the great dying, a mass extinction event at the boundary of the Permian and Triassic, and the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum, in which temperatures abruptly increased.

Climate change is also predicted to have a large impact on Tundra vegetation, causing an increase of shrubs,[47] and having a negative impact on bryophytes and lichens.[48]

Apart from concerns regarding the detrimental effects of warming in the Arctic, some potential opportunities have gained attention. The melting of the ice is making the Northwest Passage, the shipping routes through the northernmost latitudes, more navigable, raising the possibility that the Arctic region will become a prime trade route.[49] One harbinger of the opening navigability of the Arctic took place in the summer of 2016 when the Crystal Serenity successfully navigated the Northwest Passage, a first for a large cruise ship.[50] In addition, it is believed that the Arctic seabed may contain substantial oil fields which may become accessible if the ice covering them melts.[51] These factors have led to recent international debates as to which nations can claim sovereignty or ownership over the waters of the Arctic.[52][53][54][55]

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Arctic Report Card[56] presents annually updated, peer-reviewed information on recent observations of environmental conditions in the Arctic relative to historical records.

"Participation in international cooperation on climate change can be enhanced by monetary transfers, market-based mechanisms, technology transfer, and trade-related measures."[57]


Arctic waters[edit]

Arctic lands[edit]

Geographic Designation National Affiliation Designation
Alaska United States State
Aleutian Islands United States Alaskan Archipelago
Arkhangelsk Oblast Russia Federal subject
Canadian Arctic Archipelago Canada Canadian Archipelago
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug Russia Federal subject
Diomede Island (Big) Russia Island
Diomede Island (Little) United States Island
Finnmark Norway County
Franz Josef Land Russia Federal subject archipelago
Greenland Denmark Autonomous country
Grímsey Iceland Island
Jan Mayen Norway Island
Krasnoyarsk Krai Russia Federal subject
Lapland Sweden Province
Murmansk Oblast Russia Federal subject
Nenets Autonomous Okrug Russia Federal subject
New Siberian Islands Russia Archipelago
Nordland Norway County
Norrbotten Sweden Province
Northwest Territories Canada Territory
Novaya Zemlya Russia Federal subject archipelago
Nunavik Canada Northern part of Quebec
Nunavut Canada Territory
Russian Arctic islands Russia Islands
Sápmi Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia Fennoscandia region
Sakha Republic Russia Federal subject
Severnaya Zemlya Russia Federal subject archipelago
Siberia Russia Region
Svalbard Norway Governor of Svalbard archipelago
Troms Norway County
Yukon Canada Territory
Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug Russia Federal subject
Wrangel Island Russia Zapovednik (nature reserve)

See also[edit]


  1. ^ The word was originally pronounced without the /k/ sound, but the pronunciation with the k sound is nowadays very common. The "c" was added to the spelling for etymological reasons[1][2] and then began to be pronounced, but (as with other spelling pronunciations) at first only by less educated people.


  1. ^ a b American Heritage Dictionary
  2. ^ Harper, Douglas. "Antarctic". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 16 November 2011. 
  5. ^ Christopher Krembs and Jody Deming. "Organisms that thrive in Arctic sea ice." National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 18 November 2006.
  6. ^ Liddell, Henry George and Scott, Robert. "Arktikos." A Greek-English Lexicon. Perseus Digital Library.
  8. ^ "The Great Bear Constellation Ursa Major". Archived from the original on 30 November 2010. Retrieved 10 November 2010. 
  9. ^ "arctic." Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. Retrieved 2 May 2009.
  11. ^ Hansen, Jim (19 October 2006). "The Planet in Peril – Part I". Yale Center for the Study of Globalization. 
  12. ^ "A palaeontologist's Alaskan adventure". New Scientist. 9 June 2012. 
  13. ^ Hoffecker, John F. (2005). A prehistory of the north: human settlement of the higher latitudes. Rutgers University Press. p. 130. ISBN 0-8135-3469-0. 
  14. ^ Gibbon, pp. 28–31
  15. ^ Gibbon, pp. 216–217
  16. ^ McGhee, Robert (2005). The last imaginary place: a human history of the Arctic world (Digitized 7 October 2008 ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 55. ISBN 0-19-518368-1. 
  17. ^ Gibbon, p. 218
  18. ^ "First Nations Culture Areas Index". the Canadian Museum of Civilization. 
  19. ^ "Arctic Peoples". British Museum. 
  20. ^ a b c Buixadé Farré, Albert; Stephenson, Scott R.; Chen, Linling; Czub, Michael; Dai, Ying; Demchev, Denis; Efimov, Yaroslav; Graczyk, Piotr; Grythe, Henrik; Keil, Kathrin; Kivekäs, Niku; Kumar, Naresh; Liu, Nengye; Matelenok, Igor; Myksvoll, Mari; O'Leary, Derek; Olsen, Julia; Pavithran .A.P., Sachin; Petersen, Edward; Raspotnik, Andreas; Ryzhov, Ivan; Solski, Jan; Suo, Lingling; Troein, Caroline; Valeeva, Vilena; van Rijckevorsel, Jaap; Wighting, Jonathan (16 October 2014). "Commercial Arctic shipping through the Northeast Passage: Routes, resources, governance, technology, and infrastructure" (PDF). Polar Geography. 37 (4): 298. doi:10.1080/1088937X.2014.965769. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 December 2015. 
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  30. ^ Stars launch campaign to save the Arctic. Greenpeace (21 June 2012).
  31. ^ Study links 2015 melting Greenland ice to faster Arctic warming 9 June 2016 University of Georgia
  32. ^ "Arctic cut-off high drives the poleward shift of a new Greenland melting record". Nature Communications. 7: 11723. doi:10.1038/ncomms11723. 
  33. ^ Your carbon footprint destroys 30 square metres of Arctic sea ice a year The Guardian 3.11.2016
  35. ^ a b Zhang, Jinlun; D.A. Rothrock (2003). "Modeling global sea ice with a thickness and enthalpy distribution model in generalized curvilinear coordinates" (PDF). Mon. Wea. Rev. 131 (5): 681–697. Bibcode:2003MWRv..131..845Z. doi:10.1175/1520-0493(2003)131<0845:MGSIWA>2.0.CO;2. 
  36. ^ "Impacts of a warming Arctic: Arctic Climate Impact Assessment". Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. February 2005. doi:10.2277/0521617782 (inactive 2017-01-31). ISBN 0-521-61778-2. 
  37. ^ Grinberg, Emanuella (17 December 2008). "Ice melting across globe at accelerating rate, NASA says." CNN.
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  39. ^ Kerr, Richard A. (28 September 2012). "Ice-Free Arctic Sea May be Years, Not Decades, Away". Science. 337 (6102): 1591. Bibcode:2012Sci...337.1591K. doi:10.1126/science.337.6102.1591. 
  40. ^ Stroeve, Julienne; Holland, Marika M.; Meier, Walt; Scambos, Ted; Serreze, Mark (2007). "Arctic sea ice decline: Faster than forecast". Geophysical Research Letters. 34 (9): L09501. Bibcode:2007GeoRL..34.9501S. doi:10.1029/2007GL029703. 
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  42. ^ "Report: Arctic sea ice coverage second lowest on record". Reuters. 13 September 2011. 
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  45. ^ "Abrupt Climate Change Focus Of U.S. National Laboratories". Science Daily. 23 September 2008. 
  46. ^ Alatalo, Juha M.; Jägerbrand, Annika K.; Juhanson, Jaanis; Michelsen, Anders; Ľuptáčik, Peter (2017-03-15). "Impacts of twenty years of experimental warming on soil carbon, nitrogen, moisture and soil mites across alpine/subarctic tundra communities". Scientific Reports. 7. doi:10.1038/srep44489. ISSN 2045-2322. 
  47. ^ Myers-Smith, Isla H.; Forbes, Bruce C.; Wilmking, Martin; Hallinger, Martin; Lantz, Trevor; Blok, Daan; Tape, Ken D.; Macias-Fauria, Marc; Sass-Klaassen, Ute (2011-01-01). "Shrub expansion in tundra ecosystems: dynamics, impacts and research priorities". Environmental Research Letters. 6 (4): 045509. doi:10.1088/1748-9326/6/4/045509. ISSN 1748-9326. 
  48. ^ Alatalo, Juha M.; Jägerbrand, Annika K.; Molau, Ulf (2015-11-01). "Testing reliability of short-term responses to predict longer-term responses of bryophytes and lichens to environmental change". Ecological Indicators. 58: 77–85. doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2015.05.050. 
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  56. ^ Arctic Report Card. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
  57. ^ "International Cooperation: Agreements & Instruments". Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change. Contribution of Working Group III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (PDF). Cambridge University Press. Retrieved 15 June 2015. 
  58. ^ Stokmarknes in Vesterålen 1961–1990 average. (28 January 2008). Retrieved 2011-10-18.


Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]