Polar Research (E-Journal)
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Review of The expeditions of the first International Polar Year 1882–83, by William Barr
No full textIt is probably safe to assume that no readers of Polar Research are unaware that we have just come through a fourth International Polar Year (IPY). All science is, or should be, based on the previous achievements of others, and thus the experiences and results of the previous three IPYs (the latter IPY is known as the International Geophysical Year) are also in the forefront at this time. This account of the first IPY expeditions reflects that the market was ripe right now
Contrasting climate change in the two polar regions
No full textThe two polar regions have experienced remarkably different climatic changes in recent decades. The Arctic has seen a marked reduction in sea-ice extent throughout the year, with a peak during the autumn. A new record minimum extent occurred in 2007, which was 40% below the long-term climatological mean. In contrast, the extent of Antarctic sea ice has increased, with the greatest growth being in the autumn. There has been a large-scale warming across much of the Arctic, with a resultant loss of permafrost and a reduction in snow cover. The bulk of the Antarctic has experienced little change in surface temperature over the last 50 years, although a slight cooling has been evident around the coast of East Antarctica since about 1980, and recent research has pointed to a warming across West Antarctica. The exception is the Antarctic Peninsula, where there has been a winter (summer) season warming on the western (eastern) side. Many of the different changes observed between the two polar regions can be attributed to topographic factors and land/sea distribution. The location of the Arctic Ocean at high latitude, with the consequently high level of solar radiation received in summer, allows the icealbedo feedback mechanism to operate effectively. The Antarctic ozone hole has had a profound effect on the circulations of the high latitude ocean and atmosphere, isolating the continent and increasing the westerly winds over the Southern Ocean, especially during the summer and winter
Further changes at Peter I Øy
No full textFor a previous edition of Polar Research (26[2]; p. 204) I wrote a letter noting the partial collapse of a spectacular triple natural arch on the island of Peter I Øy, reported in November 2006. Two years later I was again off the island, in exceptionally clear visibility, and noted that the collapse was now complete. The island was approached from the south-east on the afternoon of 22 November 2008, again aboard the Russian icebreaker, Kapitan Khlebnikov. Aboard were 104 tourists, with 24 staff, and a complement of 62, on a voyage arranged by Quark Expeditions. The icebreaker anchored in Sandefjordbukta, which was used last time, and on several previous visits. The anchor was dropped in about 35 m of water about half a nautical mile from the coast. Landings were intended on one of the beaches of Sandefjordbukta, but winds of 20 m s-1 made this impracticable. The winds, however, caused such a reduction in cloud cover that the entire island, notably Lars Christensentoppen (1640 m elevation), was clearly visible
Community clusters in wildlife and environmental management: using TEK and community involvement to improve co-management in an era of rapid environmental change
No full textEnvironmental change has stressed wildlife co-management systems in the Arctic because parameters are changing more rapidly than traditional scientific monitoring can accommodate. Co-management systems have also been criticized for not fully integrating harvesters into the local management of resources. These two problems can be approached through the use of spatiallydefined human social units termed community clusters, which are based on the demographic or ecological units being managed. An examination of polar bear management in Nunavut Territory, Canada, shows that community clusters provide a forum to collect and analyse traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) over a geographic area that mirrors the management unit, providing detailed information of local conditions. This case study also provides examples of how instituting community clusters at a governance level provides harvesters with social space in which to develop their roles as managers, along the continuum from being powerless spectators to active, adaptive co-managers. Five steps for enhancing co-management systems through the inclusion of community clusters and their knowledge are: (1) the acceptance of TEK, science, the precautionary principle and the right of harvesters not to be constrained by overly-conservative management decisions; (2) data collection involving TEK and science, and a collaboration between the two; (3) institutionalization of community clusters for data collection; (4) institutionalization of community clusters in the management process; and (5) grass-roots initiatives to take advantage of the social space provided by the community cluster approach, in order to adapt the management to local conditions, and to effect policy changes at higher levels, so as to better meet local objectives
Evolution of the East Greenland Current between 1150 and 1740 AD, revealed by diatom-based sea surface temperature and sea-ice concentration reconstructions
No full textSediment core MD99-2322 from the East Greenland shelf has been studied to assess the variability of the East Greenland Current between 1150 and 1740 AD. Only the top 100 cm of the high-resolution core—with a 4-year resolution through the upper 20 cm, and a 10-year resolution through the remaining section—was studied. Diatoms were utilized to reconstruct both the August sea-surface temperature (SST) and the May sea-ice concentration, using the weighted averages–partial least squares and maximum likelihood transfer function methods, respectively. The record can be divided into three periods: two periods of relatively stable August SSTs and May sea-ice concentrations, separated by a period of higher August SSTs and decreasing May sea-ice concentrations between 1500 and 1670 AD, and between 1450 and 1610 AD, respectively. Both trends are statistically significant, based on the SIZER (significant zero crossing of the derivatives) analysis of the records. These changes are explained by a decrease in the strength of the East Greenland Current between 1450 and 1670 AD, which was responsible for bringing cold polar water and sea ice to the core site. Simultaneous changes observed in both these parameters points to a strong coupling between them. Because of the high resolution of the record, the natural variability of the system over the period of almost 700 years can be assessed. This variability is about 1°C (_0.9°C) for August SSTs and 12% (_7.4%) for May sea-ice concentrations
Komi reindeer herding: the effects of socialist and post-socialist change on mobility and land use
No full textThis paper contributes to the discussion concerning the way in which Soviet state policies have influenced the lives, social organization, economy and culture of a group of indigenous Komi reindeer herders of northern Russia: its main focus is to explain how these policies have changed the herders’ patterns of migration and land use. Extensive anthropological fieldwork—to determine current and past herding practices—was carried out and archives were thoroughly investigated to document land use changes in relation to state reindeer herding policies. It was found that compared with those of several decades ago, the migration routes are now much shorter, as the herders have abandoned large areas of winter pastures located in the southernmost part of their herding territory. This “abandonment” phenomenon is endemic amongst reindeer herders generally, throughout the Komi Republic. Whereas the reasons for the abandonment of winter pastures are diverse, they can be attributed mostly to the state sedentarization policy, which has modified the family structures of herders, and the continuing decreases in state subsidies that have changed the balance between state and private ownership of reindeer. Both these factors have greatly contributed to the herders’ dependence on visiting towns, where they now own flats, and on selling reindeer products, upon which they are increasingly reliant for financial security
Vulnerability and adaptation to climate-related fire impacts in rural and urban interior Alaska
No full textThis paper explores whether fundamental differences exist between urban and rural vulnerability to climate-induced changes in the fire regime of interior Alaska. We further examine how communities and fire managers have responded to these changes and what additional adaptations could be put in place. We engage a variety of social science methods, including demographic analysis, semi-structured interviews, surveys, workshops and observations of public meetings. This work is part of an interdisciplinary study of feedback and interactions between climate, vegetation, fire and human components of the Boreal forest social–ecological system of interior Alaska. We have learned that although urban and rural communities in interior Alaska face similar increased exposure to wildfire as a result of climate change, important differences exist in their sensitivity to these biophysical, climate-induced changes. In particular, reliance on wild foods, delayed suppression response, financial resources and institutional connections vary between urban and rural communities. These differences depend largely on social, economic and institutional factors, and are not necessarily related to biophysical climate impacts per se. Fire management and suppression action motivated by political, economic or other pressures can serve as unintentional or indirect adaptation to climate change. However, this indirect response alone may not sufficiently reduce vulnerability to a changing fire regime. More deliberate and strategic responses may be required, given the magnitude of the expected climate change and the likelihood of an intensification of the fire regime in interior Alaska
Ecology of stone-encrusting organisms in the Greenland Sea—a review
No full textThe Arctic is one of the most rapidly warming regions on Earth. This area is therefore very suitable for conducting studies focused on the influence of climate change on the biota. Marine communities of coastal waters are particularly sensitive to the current environmental changes (e.g., ice-scour intensity); understanding how community structure changes in response to local perturbations is thus important for providing an insight into how future communities may respond to climate change. This review focuses on the fauna colonizing stones of the Greenland Sea. It summarizes the current state of knowledge about the ecology of organisms inhabiting these substrata across a range of depths, from the intertidal to deeper parts of the continental shelf. In the intertidal zone, no stable or developed assemblage on the rocks is visible. The intertidal zone seems to be fully controlled by physical forces. In contrast, below the intertidal zone a rich and abundant fauna starts to appear on these substrata. Both biotic (e.g., competitive interactions) and abiotic (e.g., ice scour, size of the rock) processes seem to shape stone assemblages in the subtidal zone, yet their influence varies with depth. For example, the abundance of encrusting organisms decreases with depth, as does the intensity of competitive interactions. However, species richness on rocks seems to be in general higher in the deeper parts of the shelf. Possible scenarios of climate change influence on the encrusting biota, gaps in our knowledge about the ecology of stonedwelling faunal assemblages, as well as possible directions of future research, are discussed
Seasonal and spatial changes in the zooplankton community of Kongsfjorden, Svalbard
No full textSeasonal changes in the zooplankton composition of the glacially influenced Kongsfjorden, Svalbard (79°N, 12°E), and its adjacent shelf were studied in 2002. Samples were collected in the spring, summer and autumn in stratified hauls (according to hydrographic characteristics), by means of a 0.180-mm Multi Plankton Sampler. A strong front between the open sea and the fjord waters was observed during the spring, preventing water mass exchange, but was not observed later in the season. The considerable seasonal changes in zooplankton abundance were related to the seasonal variation in hydrographical regime. The total zooplankton abundance during the spring (40–2010 individuals m-3) was much lower than in the summer and autumn (410– 10 560 individuals m-3). The main factors shaping the zooplankton community in the fjord include: the presence of a local front, advection, the flow pattern and the decreasing depth of the basin in the inner fjord. Presumably these factors regulate the gross pattern of zooplankton density and distribution, and override the importance of biological processes. This study increased our understanding of seasonal processes in fjords, particularly with regard to the strong seasonal variability in the Arctic
Review of Bipolar, by Kathryn Yussof
No full textThis is a decidedly unconventional contribution to the literature concerning the International Polar Years (2007–09). It is described as a new interdisciplinary polar archive, featuring essays by the editor and the late Denis Cosgrove, and over “30 ‘archives’ by artists, scholars, scientists and thinkers” (from the back cover). I find this combination strange, perplexing and unsatisfactory. The disparate subjects are treated with little editorial uniformity, and vary from paragraphs on scientific subjects, written concisely, to more lengthy articles mainly representing the conceptions of artists. The use of language in many of the articles is highly metaphorical: indeed, this might be intentional to promote philosophical thought, but appears more to diminish any clarity of understanding. Rhetorical devices assert dubious interpretations, and then demolish them by processes described as decontextualization and deconstruction (perhaps analysis is meant?). Some writers extend sentences into paragraphs, where whatever meaning was intended becomes uncertain. I find it odd that in a note on the Antarctic Treaty system, no mention of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research appears, neither Edward Wilson nor George Marston are mentioned in passages on art history, and that the exploration of the Northwest Passage involved “bearded explorers with a passion for cannibalism” (p. 78). The book has many illustrations, the merits of which are more pictorial than informative; defects include lack of captions and dimensions, which imply that the reader should regard many as impressionistic. Solecisms such as “modular research modules” and “large megafauna” abound. The orthography is irregular (notably in Icelandic), which provides evidence of haste in the production. There are references for some papers, and short biographies of contributors, but no index