The Changing Arctic

Here are a few stories I picked up over the last few weeks that highlight changing conditions in the North.

Lake Forms on Top of West Iceland Glacier

A lake has formed in the top crater of the glacier Ok in west Iceland due to climate change, as expeditioners on behalf of the Natural History Museum of Kópavogur confirmed yesterday. The lake is a few hectares in size and 3-4.5 meters deep.

One proposal is to name the new lake Kringluvatn (“Circle Lake”) in the honor of Snorri Sturluson, who’s epic Heimskringla is so-named from its opening words, “Kringla heimsins, sú er mannfólkit byggir, er mjök vágskorin”: “The earth’s circle, which the human race inhabits.”

Russian Yacht Circumnavigates the North Pole

The Russian sailing yacht Peter I has wrapped up its one-season trip around the North Pole in what became the world’s first such voyage without an icebreaker.

First high-tonnage tanker through Northeast Passage

The 100,000 ton tanker “Baltica” left Murmansk on Saturday loaded with gas condensate for China.

The Northern Sea route is open for less than two months in the late summer when the ice is at its minimum. The period of possible sailing along Siberia’s northern coast is however increasing due to the rapid ongoing climate changes.

Norilsk-Nickel shipment arrived in Shanghai

The ice-classed vessel “Monchegorsk” is the first cargo vessel to sail the entire Northern Sea Route without icebreaker assistance.