Arctic

Permafrost is frozen ground - a mixture of soil, rock, sand, and ice - that remains at or below 0°C for at least two consecutive years. Permafrost covers about a quarter of the landmass in the Northern Hemisphere, the majority of which can be found in northern Russia, Canada, Alaska, Iceland, and Scandinavia. As long as it stays frozen, it’s no threat to the climate.

The changing climate poses a major threat to polar bear survival. But new research suggests that rising temperatures may be altering polar bear DNA in ways that help them adapt and endure in increasingly challenging environments.

The Olana Partnership, in collaboration with the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, presents "Chasing Icebergs: Art and a Disappearing Landscape," the first winter exhibition at Olana State Historic Site. The exhibition, shown primarily in the Sharp Family Gallery at Olana, highlights Frederic Church’s iceberg sketches from his 1859 intrepid voyage to the Arctic.

A DNA test suggesting she shared some genetics with the Sami people, the indigenous inhabitants of the Arctic tundra, tapped into Laura Galloway's wanderlust. An affair with a Sami reindeer herder led her to abandon her high-flying New York life for a fresh start in the tiny town of Kautokeino. When her new boyfriend left her unexpectedly after six months, it would have been easy, and perhaps prudent, to return home. But she stayed for six years. "Dalvi" (Atlantic) is the story of Laura's time in a reindeer-herding village in Arctic Norway, forging a solitary existence as one of the few Westerners living among one of the most remote cultures on earth.

After record-breaking heat in the first half of 2016, Arctic sea ice is trending low. For the last three decades, the ice has been disappearing at a…

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond.Today's panelists are WAMC’s Alan Chartock, SUNY Albany Journalism…

Rising temperatures are threatening the biodiversity of the Arctic.Dr. Hans Meltofte, senior scientist at Denmark's Aarhus University, describes the…

Scientists say the world's air has reached a troubling new milestone for carbon dioxide, the main global warming pollutant. WAMC’s Tristan O’Neill…