Polar Journal

Deep-Sea Mining in the Arctic: Opportunity for the Energy Transition – or Threat to a Fragile Ecosystem? | Polar Journal The Arctic holds mineral resources that are becoming increasingly important for a climate-friendly future. Against this backdrop, Norway faces a decision with far-reaching consequences

Deep-Sea Mining in the Arctic: Opportunity for the Energy Transition or Threat to a Fragile Ecosystem?
polarjournal.net/deep-sea-min...

Forty years after leaving the EEA, Greenland is seeking closer ties with the EU again.

Read more 👉 polarjournal.net/greenland-se...

New Russian-Chinese Collaboration in the Polar Regions | Polar Journal Russia and China will jointly train specialists for navigation in polar waters, according to a memorandum signed during Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin’s visit to China, the Russian Ministry ...

Russia and China will jointly train specialists for navigation in polar waters, according to a memorandum signed in Hangzhou

Read the full story here: polarjournal.net/new-russian-...

Swiss Seed Samples for the Global Seed Vault in Svalbard

Switzerland delivered 921 new seed samples to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. A contribution to global food security.

Read the full story here 👉 polarjournal.net/swiss-seed-s...

Polar Journal is back!
With fresh energy and a new team, we’re bringing you fascinating stories, behind-the-scenes insights, and all the latest from the world’s polar regions.
www.polarjournal.net

Thank you very much for your kind words 🙏🏻

Subglacial meltwater boosts Greenland’s summer plankton bloom | Polar Journal 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 o...

In Greenland’s Disko Bay, subglacial meltwater lifts nutrient-rich deep water to the surface, driving a summer phytoplankton bloom. That’s good for the food web, but the climate effect is modest: the modeled CO₂ uptake rises by only about 3%.

polarjournal.net/subglacial-m...

The Polar Retrospective - Subantarctic Visitor Changes, a 66-Year-Old Mystery Solved, and a Warning for Reindeer | Polar Journal 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 A...

Time, a changing climate, and humans are the connecting factors of our latest Polar Retrospective. We thereby take you to islands in the Southern Ocean and into the Arctic region, just as we love doing, bringing you stories from both sides of the planet
#science
polarjournal.net/the-polar-re...

Forgotten fault zone in the Yukon: Tintina fault could trigger a major earthquake | Polar Journal 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 1,000-kilometre-long Tintina Fault runs less than 20 kilometres from Dawson City. New research by the University of Victoria shows it has produced major quakes in the geologically recent past — and may be building toward another exceeding magnitude 7.5.

polarjournal.net/forgotten-fa...

Launch of New South Georgia Entry Permit System Halted | Polar Journal The Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands had planned to implement a new ETA system for visitors but had to delay these plans now.

When traveling to the UK, you need an ETA. But what’s new is that if you travel to the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia, you also need to have an ETA. But getting one is currently difficult as the system is not operational yet.
#Antarctic #tourism
polarjournal.net/launch-of-ne...

The Polar Retrospective – A new map, a new vessel, and a new threat for Arctic foxes | Polar Journal 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 v...

New, new, new, that’s our take from last week’s information coming from Antarctica and the Arctic. But not all of them were good news, unfortunately. Especially from Svalbard, we got some worrying news about Arctic foxes.
polarjournal.net/the-polar-re...
#Arctic #map #island #fox #avianflu #inuit

Our DNA analysis of 75,000-year-old bones in Arctic caves reveals how animals responded to changing climates | Polar Journal 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 reac...

It’s all in the bones, at least when you are looking into the past of Arctic animals and scientists of the @bournemouthuni.bsky.social and @uio.no were particularly lucky in finding 75,000 years old bones in a Norwegian Arctic cave.
#DNA #climate #Arctic
polarjournal.net/our-dna-anal...

A Shifting High North Drives Europe to Rebuild Arctic Security | Polar Journal In response to the new geopolitical realities from Russia and China and a divergent USA, key European nations are fundamentally rebuilding their Arctic security through new strategic alliances, polici...

Arctic security is at the top of priority lists of several European nations. We explore the reasons for countries like Germany and France to invest more into their Arctic security strategies.
polarjournal.net/a-shifting-h...
#Arctic #politics #security #Europe #defense #USA

Rockabye baby: the ‘love songs’ of lonely leopard seals resemble human nursery rhymes | Polar Journal Male leopard seals sing for hours each day over many weeks and their patterned trills resemble the structure of human nursery rhymes. A new study reveals that these underwater love songs may be delibe...

Male leopard seals spend hours each day calling underwater during breeding season. A new study shows their vocal patterns are simple, repetitive and remarkably similar to human nursery rhymes.

polarjournal.net/rockabye-bab...

An underwater observatory keeping the pulse of the Southern Ocean for nearly 30 years yields fresh results | Polar Journal 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...

🌊 For nearly 30 years, Australia’s Southern Ocean Time Series has delivered key climate and ocean data — and it's more vital than ever as global monitoring efforts face setbacks.

Originally via The Conversation.

polarjournal.net/an-underwate...

Do Marine Protected Areas in Polar Oceans Actually Work? | Polar Journal 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...

While it seems easy to create a MPA in polar regions on a map, the reality is more complex. Two new studies that seem to contradict each other, are actually showing which strategies future polar MPAs should take.
polarjournal.net/do-marine-pr...
#conservation #Arctic #Antarctica

On Svalbard, winters are melting too | Polar Journal 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 ar...

Looking back, February 2025 was too mild in many regions of the Northern hemisphere, especially on Svalbard. Here, scientists found areas that looked like springtime rather than winter. Read more about it here
👉 polarjournal.net/on-svalbard-...
#climate #svalbard #warming #science

Tsunami warnings for Alaskan islands after 8.8-earthquake | Polar Journal After the strongest earthquake recorded this year near the Russian Kamchatka Peninsula, tsunami warnings were issued from Alaska to Antarctica.

The strongest earthquake recorded this year so far (8.8) has hit the east coast of Kamchatka and authorities in several countries have issued tsunami warnings that reach from Alaska even to East Antarctica.
polarjournal.net/tsunami-warn...
#Alaska #earthquake #tsunami #Antarctica

So Robert Falcon Scott wasn't lying? | Polar Journal 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 t...

The end of Scott and his companions on their ill-fated expedition to the South Pole is still debated: did the blizzard occur or not? A new study sheds light on this long debate in favour of Scott.
#Antarctica #history #expedition #weather
polarjournal.net/so-robert-fa...

The Polar Retrospective - 10 tractors for Antarctica, iceberg calving triggered by tides, and wildfires and polar bears | Polar Journal The Polar Retrospective looks at recent stories from around the world’s polar regions. This week we take a look at a $17 million contract between the Norwegian Polar Institute and Prinoth, at new insi...

Last week saw some hot topics coming from the polar regions and we managed to catch a few for you. Whether you are interested in technics, science or conservation, you’ll find it in our team’s latest retrospective
#Arctic #Antarctica #science #technical #polarbear
polarjournal.net/the-polar-re...

Can we reclaim the narrative in a world abandoning climate protection? Whether you look at science or news reports of weather extremes across the globe, there can be no doubt climate warming is already playing havoc with our livels. So why is the willingness to do som…

When vacation photos from the far north show a glacier at 30°C, it's clear that something is wrong with the climate. In her new blog, @iceblogger.bsky.social asks why so many don't care and whether we can regain control of the situation.
iceblog.org/2025/07/22/c...

In German exclusively with us.

Protecting Arctic foxes in Fennoscandia from genetic decline | Polar Journal Following a dramatic decline, Arctic foxes are gradually recovering in northern Europe thanks to targeted conservation efforts. But while their numbers are rising, their genetic diversity isn’t – and ...

Arctic foxes are slowly recovering in northern Europe – but inbreeding remains a threat.
A new report shows that genetic diversity isn’t keeping pace with population growth. Conservationists now aim to improve gene flow between fragmented groups.

polarjournal.net/protecting-a...

The Complex Path to a New U.S. Icebreaker Fleet | Polar Journal The US icebreaker program is struggling amidst high costs and delays while a Finnish-Canadian consortium could help but is hampered by the current trade policy of the US government.

Icebreakers are essential. However, the #USA has been struggling for more than a decade to modernize its fleet. While a newly acquired vessel enters the service of the @uscg-official.bsky.social construction of new #icebreakers faces several issues.
polarjournal.net/the-complex-...
#Arctic #ships

Wordie - Chronicle of a disappearance | Polar Journal 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 Antarcti...

We've almost forgotten it, but Wordie wasn't always a bay: it was once an ici shelf, and its slow disappearance is a typical example of the powerful phenomenon of #glacier collapse in #Antarctica, fuelled by human activity and political inaction. #Climate polarjournal.net/wordie-chron...

The Polar Retrospective – French Arctic Defense Strategy, gravity waves in the Arctic Ocean and the eruption of a volcano in Iceland | Polar Journal The Polar Retrospective looks at recent stories from around the world’s polar regions. This week we take a look at the French defense strategy for the Arctic, a new research group investigating gravity waves in the Arctic Ocean and the eruption of a volcano.

Today, our team dives deep into the Arctic, from the deep sea to the deep earth to deep defense politics in their retrospective of last week’s happenings in polar regions.
All just one click away.
polarjournal.net/the-polar-re...

#Arctic #politics #science #iceland #France #ocean #volcano

How early life could have survived the "Snowball Earth" phases | Polar Journal 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.

Could life have survived the “Snowball Earth” ice ages in meltwater ponds near the equator?
A new Antarctic study finds diverse microbial life in ephemeral ponds on the McMurdo Ice Shelf — offering clues to how early eukaryotes endured one of the coldest chapters in Earth’s history.

China's Arctic Paradox: Calling for Caution Amidst Shipping Expansion | Polar Journal While Chinese scientists issue urgent pleas to limit Arctic shipping to protect the region from the environmental impact, Chinese shipping companies plan on sending more and more vessels into the Arct...

China's economy views the Arctic as crucial to securing its global economic power. At the same time, however, Chinese scientists are loudly calling for the international regulation of shipping in the Arctic. A paradox?
#Arctic #economy #china #science
polarjournal.net/chinas-arcti...

Thwaites: countdown to disintegration | Polar Journal 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 ...

The Thwaites Glacier is living out its last years of stability: the disintegration of its floating platform is approaching. Find out in this article about the last 6 years of scientific discoveries on Thwaites.
#Antarctica #Glacier #icemelting
polarjournal.net/thwaites-cou...

The Polar Retrospective - Successful Antarctic Citizen Science Project, Arctic Toxins and Erupting Volcanoes | Polar Journal 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 t...

A look back at the past week in the polar regions with the impact of a NASA-supported #citizen science project in Antarctica, rising #toxin levels in Arctic Alaska and melting glaciers that could trigger new volcanic #eruptions.
polarjournal.net/the-polar-re...

More and more tourists are flocking to Antarctica. Let’s stop it from being loved to death | Polar Journal Professors Darla Hatton MacDonald and Elizabeth Leane explain how new market based tools can help to prevent overtourism in Antarctica in this article provided by The Conversation.

Professors Darla Hatton MacDonald and Elizabeth Leane explain how new market based tools can help to prevent overtourism in Antarctica in this article provided by The Conversation.
polarjournal.net/more-and-mor...
#Antarctica #Tourism