Arctic Kingdom supplies the accomodations and transportation, but unless you are a pro photographer with access to specialized gear, how to best protect your cameras from the elements and ensure your trip remains well documented?

I highly approve of Scott Bourne’s first tip, posted over at his informative Photofocus site,

Get out there. Weather is the photographer’s friend. Don’t let the cold or snow or ice or whatever stop you. It can add beauty and visual elements to your photography that make the difference between good and great photos..

Scott follows up with practical tips on protecting your lenses, dealing with batteries in variable conditions, and keeping moisture out of your camera.

You don’t want to get moisture or condensation inside your camera or your lens. You really don’t. Also be careful when bringing your camera indoors to a warm house from a cold outside. Put your camera/lenses in plastic bags that you can seal before you bring them in. That way the condensation forms on the bag not the gear.

Professional wildlife photographer Carolyn E. Wrigh offers up some advice on how to dress yourself for the cold,

In the most severe conditions, add face protection with a face mask, a baklava, or a neck gaiter. And never forget the sunscreen. Snow reflecting the sun’s rays will intensify your UV exposure, even on cloudy days.

As always, you can check out our store for a great selection of cold-weather clothing. Now that you’ve taken care of how to keep you and your camera warm and dry, you can focus on perfecting your wildlife photography shooting and processing skills.

The Beyond Megapixels blog also has a few helpful suggestions on the technical side of exposing potentially challenging subjects properly, for example, photographing polar bears with a backdrop of snow or ice.

Mother and cubs sleeping on an iceberg

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In this month’s issue:

Iintroducing our new trip: Arviat Fly-In Polar Bear & Northern Lights Cabins

Move over Churchill! Make room for Arviat. Countless polar bears from the comfort of our Arviat Polar Bear cabins set on the shores of Hudson Bay.

– Thomas

Subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest news on upcoming expeditions, special deals, and reports from the field. It’s easy! Just enter your email address into the subscription box below.

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Scientists working in Antarctica have discovered four new species of octopus, armed with a cold-resistant venom. Researcher Bryan Fry explains:

We found that venom can work at sub-zero temperatures. It was quite remarkable to find how well octopuses have adapted to Antarctic life,” Fry said.

There was a great diversity of species, ranging from octopuses that were two inches long to giant ones, he said.

“Evolutionary selection pressures slowly changed their venom, which allowed them to spread into colder and colder waters and eventually spread into super-cold waters,” Fry said in a telephone interview on Thursday.

“We want to see what cool and wonderful new venom components we can find out of these venoms that would be useful in drug development,” he said.

“Nature has designed a perfect killing weapon … they have such incredibly accurate activity that there has to be a way to harness that. To tweak it or modify it or just use one little chunk.”

The previously-undiscovered venoms could be a boon to medical science. Snake venom serves as the basis of some hypertension medications, and diabetes medicines have been derived from the saliva of the gila monster.

via: Reuters

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The Arctic is full of surprises. Ice breaks up unexpectedly, animals alter their migratory patterns, or the weather shifts suddenly, bringing snow. But there’s one thing you just don’t expect: Snow.

That’s just what the Catlin Arctic Survey Team encountered, though. Here’s the latest:

Paul Ramsden, the Catlin Arctic Survey Ice Base Manager, reported big raindrops fell during the shower. “I had to look twice. Snow flurries we expect, not rain. It is obviously quite worrying when you are camped out on ice! I felt distinctly nervous for a while because the consequences of getting wet here can be serious – but eventually it stopped and we are all safe” he said.

Such weather conditions are not only rare — they’re virtually unheard of. According to the Canadian Weather Officem, normal weather for Isachsen (located 20 miles east of the base camp) boasts highs in the -1.1’s (Celcius) and rainfall at “nil.” That’s based on climate data for a period stretching from 1951-1980.

The rain points to some serious changes taking place in the global weather system. Expedition Director and Arctic explorer Pen Hadow notes that, “there will be more unpredicted events like this as the climate of the region warms. Our team up there have already reported many locals people at Resolute have also been commenting on the unusual warmth of the winter this year.”

“Expeditions don’t expect to be confronted by rain and Arctic gear – clothing and tents – are certainly not made for rain. Polar clothing is made to be breathable not waterproof and if it gets wet it just freezes making it less effective in keeping body heat inside. The Arctic is normally very dry, but of course very cold, so I’m really pleased for the team that it didn’t rain for too long.

You can read more about the Catlin Arctic Survey — which includes updates on the team as well as insight into the science being done with the data they’ve collected — on their website.

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On Monday, I blogged about the ice breakup the Catlin Arctic Survey team experienced at their camp the previous week.

The video above, filmed previous to the ice breakup at camp, shows the extreme conditions the team has been experiencing this year. It starts with some fast-moving ice, and goes on to show the difficult conditions the team traverses in the course of attaining water and ice samples.

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We like outdoor adventures.

This Friday through Sunday, Arctic Kingdom will be at Toronto’s Outdoor Adventure Show, Canada’s largest outdoor adventure expo. Visit our booth to get information about our expeditions and trips, get some great deals on expedition gear, or just say hello!

The Adventure Show will be at the International Centre, near Pearson International Airport. Tickets can be purchased at the gate for $12, or you can save money by purchasing advance tickets online. Visit the Adventure Show website for hours and details, including directions to the venue.

Hope to see you there!

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If you’re a regular visitor to the blog,  you’ve read your fair share about the Arctic. You’ve seen pictures of polar bears and sled dogs, and even watched videos of narwhals breaking the surface of Arctic waters.

But what’s it really like, day-to-day? Today, Arctic Kingdom founder and CEO (that’s Chief Expedition Officer) Graham Dickson will be sharing first-hand accounts encounters with polar bears and narwals, glimpses into camp life on the floe edge, and images from past Arctic Kingdom expeditions.

Today’s webinar is a unique chance to hear firsthand from our founder about life on the floe edge, the sights and sounds of the Arctic, and animal encounters at the edge of the world.

Space is limited, but there are a few seats left!
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/267344787

Title: Arctic Kingdom Expeditions – Narwhal and Polar Bear Floe Edge Adventure

Date: Wednesday, February 3, 2010 — TODAY!

Time: 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM EST

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

Want to experience the annual narwhal migration yourself? Start your journey today by visiting our Narwhal and Polar Bear Expedition trip page!

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The Arctic is a wickedly complex system, and there are all these cascading effects. Change in itself isn’t always that bad. Look at the great ice ages of the past. The key here is how rapidly the change will unfold. Do I fear for the extinction of the human species? No, but you can say good-bye to a lot of species that we have today. We’re looking at a different world. That world is coming fast, and the Arctic is leading the way.

– Geographer Mark Serreze, Quoted in Discover Magazine’s Top 100 Stories of 2009

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The Anchorage Daily News ran a story recently on a group of scientists’ efforts to determine how polar bears are dealing with the loss of sea ice. In order to get a full picture, the researchers are viewing bears up close, in their natural environment.

“It’s definitely not for everyone,” said Katrin Iken, associate professor of marine biology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, who led the team of ice researchers from UAF.

The ice divers, layered in polypropylene, fleece and dry suits, went to work through holes cut in the ice to gather samples from biological communities associated with sea ice. Tethered to a team member above, they went as deep as 40 feet to explore the bottoms of ice ridges — the underwater version of the pressure ridges up top — for a look at what lives down there.

In the big picture, it’s all about understanding what melting ice means to the larger food web in the Arctic.

For more on the study, including pictures of the bears and their environment, check out the article over at Anchorage Daily News: Scientists go to extremes for Arctic Research

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Igloolik, October 2006. Photo by Louise Murray.

Today marks the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. In Fairbanks, Alaska, the sun will rise at 10:49 AM and set 3 hours, 41 minutes, and 20 seconds later. Further north, the sun won’t rise at all. The North Pole hasn’t seen any sun since October.

But this, the darkest day, marks the sun’s eventual return. From here, the days start getting longer, until finally in February or March even the northernmost Arctic regions will begin to see sunlight again.

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