Polar

Barnacle geese have developed new migration routes and breeding grounds amid warming global temperatures. 

Animal species are evolving to adjust to climate change, but scientists say time is running out

Scientists have been studying changes in animal physiology and behavior, some of which they believe are linked to rising global temperatures. They say the adaptations are beneficial, but may have limitations in the long term.

Animal species are evolving to adjust to climate change, but scientists say time is running out
A small herd of reindeer on a snowy field

Reindeer eyes change color, putting Rudolph’s red nose in the shade, new research says

Reindeer eyes change color, putting Rudolph’s red nose in the shade, new research says
An iceberg melts in Kulusuk, Greenland near the Arctic Circle, Aug, 16, 2005. A new report finds permafrost in the Arctic is thawing faster than ever before.

Critical permafrost research in Russia disrupted by war in Ukraine

Critical permafrost research in Russia disrupted by war in Ukraine
This mother polar bear and her two cubs are headed down to the sea ice in the Svalbard archipelago. She’ll have to teach them to hunt seals, their primary prey, in a changing landscape.

Svalbard’s polar bears persist as sea ice melts — but not forever

Svalbard’s polar bears persist as sea ice melts — but not forever
People watch a TV screen showing a news program reporting about North Korea's missile launch with file footage at a train station in Seoul, South Korea

North Korea launches suspected ballistic missile

North Korea launches suspected ballistic missile
Sea ice breaks apart as the Finnish icebreaker MSV Nordica traverses the Northwest Passage through the Victoria Strait in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago in a Friday, July 21, 2017, file photo.

Sea ice plays a crucial role in cooling the planet. It’s melting at record-breaking rates.

According to research at the Norwegian Polar Institute, last decade’s average Arctic sea-ice levels hit their lowest in 1,000 years. And last month, sea ice reached its lowest point ever recorded in July.

Sea ice plays a crucial role in cooling the planet. It’s melting at record-breaking rates.
An Emperor penguin jumps out of the water.

With global warming, Emperor penguins will 'have no place to breed' says researcher

A new study says if global warming continues at its current rate, more than 80% of Emperor penguin colonies will be gone in the next 80 years. Phil Trathan, who co-authored the study, joined The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the plight of penguins.

With global warming, Emperor penguins will 'have no place to breed' says researcher
An elder wearing sunglasses and a white coat points off into the Arctic distance while standing by another man wearing sunglasses.

New app helps Inuit adapt to changing climate: ‘It’s time for the harpoon and computer to work together’

Digital tools like SIKU facilitate real-time monitoring and data gathering to give Arctic communities more capacity to track trends in sea ice and wildlife — and plan for the future.  

New app helps Inuit adapt to changing climate: ‘It’s time for the harpoon and computer to work together’
ICARUS cosmonaut space station

New ICARUS tracking system helps scientists unlock mysteries of migration

Information collected from orbiting satellites can tell us a lot about the weather, our changing climate and abundant life on Earth. Thanks to advances in technology, soon we may be able to watch, in real-time, the movements and migration of tiny winged species, including insects.

New ICARUS tracking system helps scientists unlock mysteries of migration
Smoke rises from wildfires near Berezovka River in Russia

A heat wave in Siberia signals dangerous Arctic warming

Siberia hit a record-high temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit on June 20 in the town of Verkhoyansk, north of the Arctic Circle. Scientists say it is an ominous sign of things to come. “I was shocked at the magnitude of it ..." says Susan Natali, Arctic program director at Woods Hole Research Center.

A heat wave in Siberia signals dangerous Arctic warming
A man plays the grand piano on a floating platform in front of a glacier.

Music to soothe the soul: Ludovico Einaudi's 'Elegy for the Arctic'

Composer and Italian classical piano superstar Ludovico Einaudi teamed up with Greenpeace in 2016 to perform a concert in support of the campaign for a marine sanctuary in the North Pole’s international waters.

Music to soothe the soul: Ludovico Einaudi's 'Elegy for the Arctic'
two women pose for a photo with a dog in the snow.

Tips to survive self-isolation from citizen scientists on a remote Norwegian island

With their nearest neighbor about 100 miles away and with no running water or electricity, two citizen scientists have discovered a few tricks for coping.

Tips to survive self-isolation from citizen scientists on a remote Norwegian island
A large snowy landscape photograph depicts a single dirt road running through the lower half with a large yellow dump truck driving.

On Baffin Island in the fragile Canadian Arctic, an iron ore mine spews black carbon

The Mary River iron mine facility in the frozen landscape of Canada's Baffin Island wants to quadruple its output by 2025, producing 65.3 metric tons of the super-pollutant.

On Baffin Island in the fragile Canadian Arctic, an iron ore mine spews black carbon
Abandoned snow-covered buildings

‘I am a hostage of the north’: Trapped in a post-Gulag Arctic city

Many Russians in the far north have been waiting for more than two decades to be resettled in lower latitudes. They are caught between Moscow's grand plans for Arctic development and an exodus of aging Soviet workers longing to see flowers rather than blizzards in the springtime.

‘I am a hostage of the north’: Trapped in a post-Gulag Arctic city
A view of Murmansk with a smoke stack and other buildings as the sun rises.

The sun sometimes rises: How one Russian city makes it through the polar night

Murmansk is the largest city in the Arctic Circle. Nowhere else in the world do so many people spend so long in near-perpetual darkness. On Sunday, residents came out to catch the first glimpse of the sun in 40 days.

The sun sometimes rises: How one Russian city makes it through the polar night