Narwhals are arctic whales that live in social groups called pods. CoreyFord/Getty Images hide caption
Arctic Arctic
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Arctic
To observe the microalgae of the Arctic, biogeochemist Clara Hoppe and her team spent months on a ship embedded in sea ice as part of the MOSAiC expedition, sampling ice and seawater. Saga Svarsdottir/Alfred Wegener Institut hide caption
The Arctic tundra is warming up and that's causing long-frozen ground to melt as well as an increase in wildfires. The region is "now emitting more carbon that it stores, which will worsen climate change impacts," explained NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad in a statement. Gerald Frost/Courtesy of NOAA hide caption
Large icebergs and smaller pieces of ice melt in the ocean waters near Ilulissat, Greenland on Sept. 7, 2023. The icebergs broke free from Sermeq Kujalleq, one of the largest and fastest moving Greenland outlet glaciers. Ice loss from Greenland has increased substantially during the 21st century and continued in 2023. Twila Moon/National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) hide caption
Arctic "report card" points to rapid and dramatic impacts of climate change
A demonstrator protests against the Biden administration's approval of the Willow oil project in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. Patrick Semansky/AP hide caption
The iron ore mine in Kiruna, north of the Arctic Circle, is one of the world's largest iron ore mines. Jackie Northam/NPR hide caption
Left: On Sept. 27, 2020, the Glass Fire burns a hillside above Silverado Trail in St. Helena, Calif. Right: The ice that covers the Arctic Ocean is shrinking as the climate gets hotter. Scientists are finding it could be linked to weather that's helping fuel disasters. Left: Noah Berger/AP Right: Andy Mahoney/University of Alaska Fairbanks hide caption
Wildfires are bigger. Arctic ice is melting. Now, scientists say they're linked
In the coastal community of Kotzebue, Alaska, climate change is threatening the way of life for Native communities who have been living there for generations. Prisma Bildagentur/Universal Images Group via Getty Images hide caption
Temperatures in Longyearbyen, Norway above the Arctic Circle hit a new record above 70 degrees Fahrenheit in July 2020. The Arctic has warmed nearly four times faster than the planet as a whole since 1979, a new study finds. Sean Gallup/Getty Images hide caption
The Arctic is heating up nearly four times faster than the whole planet, study finds
Norwegian coast guard cutters are used for rescue, fishery inspection, research purposes and general patrols in Norwegian waters. Nora Lorek for NPR hide caption
A new Iron Curtain is eroding Norway's hard-won ties with Russia on Arctic issues
Tourists visit the South Shetland Islands in Antarctica in 2019. A new study suggests that tourism and research activity in the most heavily trafficked part of the continent are leading to significantly more snow melt. Johan Ordonez/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Soot is accelerating snow melt in popular parts of Antarctica, a study finds
A walrus pictured at the Pairi Daiza animal park in Brugelette, Belgium. John Thys/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Voters stand in line to cast ballots Tuesday for Greenland's parliamentary elections at a polling station in the capital. Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
A man wears a mask as the territory of Nunavut enters a two week mandatory restriction period in Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada, on Wednesday. More than 80 COVID-19 cases have been identified this month in Nunavut, where around 39,000 people, predominantly Inuit, live in communities scattered across the territory. Natalie Maerzluft/Reuters hide caption
Glacier mice in Iceland. Ruth Mottram hide caption
From left: Sekou Sheriff, of Barkedu village in Liberia, whose parents died at an Ebola treatment center; a polio vaccination booth in Pakistan; a schoolgirl in Ethiopia examines underwear with a pocket for a menstrual pad; an image from a video on the ethics of selfies; Consolata Agunga goes door-to-door as a community health worker in her village in Kenya. From left: John Poole/NPR; Jason Beaubien/NPR; Courtesy of Be Girl Inc.; SAIH Norway/Screenshot by NPR; Marc Silver/NPR hide caption
The Nielsens' sheep farm sits on the edge of a fjord in southern Greenland. The family has owned and run the farm since 1972. Claire Harbage/NPR hide caption
In A Warming Greenland, A Farming Family Adapts To Drought — And New Opportunities
Protesters demonstrate against Exxon Mobil in New York City in October. New York state's attorney general alleged that the company misled its investors by lying about the potential impacts of climate regulation on its bottom line. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Corbis via Getty Images hide caption
Carrying her baby in a pouch on her back, Susan Enoogoo, 39, hunts for ringed seal on the sea ice near Arctic Bay, Nunavut. Inuit mothers often carry their baby when hunting. If a seal surfaces, Enoogoo tries to snag it with the hook she's holding and drag it out of the water. Acacia Johnson for NPR hide caption
Narsaq, a town of 1,200 in southern Greenland, sits near the Kvanefjeld project, one of two major rare earth mineral deposits in Greenland. The Arctic island has a wealth of rare earth resources that the U.S. has labeled as essential to national defense. Claire Harbage/NPR hide caption
Greenland Is Not For Sale. But It Has Rare Earth Minerals America Wants
Russian research vessel Akademik Fedorov helped search for the MOSAiC ice floe. It made its way through the ice of the central Arctic Ocean. Ravenna Koenig/NPR hide caption
Norwegian Pvt. Ivan Sjoetun sits in the border post where Russian land can be seen out the window. The post is in the far northeast corner of Norway and offers a commanding view of this starkly beautiful area some 250 miles above the Arctic Circle. Claire Harbage/NPR hide caption
In A Remote Arctic Outpost, Norway Keeps Watch On Russia's Military Buildup
A harp seal lies on a road in Roddickton-Bide Arm on Friday. Dozens of the animals are currently stranded in the small Canadian town. Courtesy of Brendon Fitzpatrick hide caption