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Mosaic of the Arctic

July 20th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in IN THE NEWS, SCIENCE

Another stunning example of Arctic photography from space, via the NASA Goddard Space Center.

On June 30, 2011 the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Terra satellite made multiple passes over the Arctic, capturing a true-color image of the summer lands and sea-ice near the North Pole on each pass. Individual images were then pieced together to create a large mosaic of the area, which gives a broader, circumpolar, view that would not be possible with individual images.

In this mosaic of the Arctic, the polar ice cap appears blue-white, while the ice covering land appears bright white. The ice of Greenland, in the lower left (southwest), is especially bright. Clouds also appear bright white, and can be difficult to separate from ice in true-color images. Most of the clouds in this image appear in billowing swirls, while ice tends to be smoother. This can only be confirmed in the false-color images that were also generated by MODIS that same day.

The North Pole is found northeast off the coast of Greenland, in the middle of the ice-covered Arctic Ocean and roughly near the center of this image. This is the northernmost point on Earth, and defines the geodectic latitude of 90 degrees north. From the North Pole, all directions are south.

Arctic Kingdom Featured In The National Post

July 19th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in AK NEWS, Photographers, TRIPS

Don’t miss this terrific article on Arctic Kingdom from today’s National Post -

“Did you get it?” Michelle Valberg yells. “Oh my gosh, he’s right there!”

Ms. Valberg is calling from a satellite phone on Arctic Bay, an Inuit hamlet on Baffin Island in Nunavut, and the professional photographer has just spotted a Narwhal whale.

“Narwhals are swimming in a calm pool with an iceberg beside us, there’s nothing for miles and miles and we have mountains behind us,” she says, adding she just uploaded a photo of a polar bear she spotted to Facebook.

Ms. Valberg – who is from Ottawa and is working on a book on the North – along with a handful of other photographers – are part of an expedition organized by Arctic Kingdom Polar Expeditions Inc. The Toronto-based company facilitates logistics for everything from tourist trips to 50-person film crews, all in the North: from James Bay to the North Pole and from Alaska to Svalbard in Arctic Norway.

The trips are a decided step above winter camping though, with generators and cook tents, cots to sleep on and even Internet access.

“We specialize in making the places where people need to be accessible,” says Graham Dickson, chief “expedition” officer, who founded the company in 1999.

Michelle Valberg, interviewed for this piece has posted the photos mentioned to our Facebook page. Thanks Michelle!

A few other papers have picked up this story as well, check it out on the Montreal Gazette, and the Vancouver Sun.

Arctic Fox Pups At The Aquarium of the Pacific

July 19th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in IN THE NEWS

Via. Zooborns –

Arctic fox babies are called either pups or kits. A litter usually has about seven kits but may contain up to fifteen. The Arctic fox is an incredibly resilient animal that can live in temperatures as low as -59° F and as warm as temperatures we experience in Southern California. They are found in the Arctic and alpine tundra regions, from coastal Alaska and Greenland to Scandinavia and Russia.

Photo by The Aquarium Of The Pacific

The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, Californa welcomes two new (and extremely adorable) six week old arctic fox pups. The fox pups are part of their ominously titled ‘Arctic and Antarctica: Our polar Regions in Peril‘ exhibit.

Special Exhibits, Canadian Arctic Exploration

July 18th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in Art, IN THE NEWS

A special exhibit is currently showing at the Canadian Museum of Civilization on The Canadian Arctic Expedition of 1913–1918. This exhibit, presented in collaboration with the Canadian Museum of Nature, covers not only the broad adventure, but paints a day to day picture of what life was like on an early arctic expedition.

The Expedition was composed of an international group of scientists and sailors. Countries of birth included Australia, Estonia, Portugal, Norway, Holland, Scotland, Canada and the United States. Also invaluable to the Expedition were guides, hunters, seamstresses and other personnel recruited from Inupiat communities in Alaska, and Inuvialuit and Copper Inuit communities on the Canadian side of the border.

For those of us geographically unable to make a visit in person, there is also this wonderful virtual exhibit - Northern People, Northern Knowledge.

From The Field, Viewing Polar Bears

July 14th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in AK PRODUCTS & SERVICES, TRIPS

While visiting our polar bear cabins south of Arviat today, we saw three polar bears in 20 min, including this swimming polar bear from our boat. You can see the polar bear cabins on the horizon. Looking forward to seeing more polar bears here in November on the Arviat Fly-in Polar Bear Cabins trip.

Expedition Watch, Old Pulteney Row To The Pole

June 26th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in Current Events, IN THE NEWS

This may be a first, an Arctic expedition led by explorer Jock Wishart has partnered with a whiskey distiller to sponsor a rowing excursion from Resolute Bay to the magnetic North Pole.

The idea for Row to the Pole first came about when Jock was at Resolute Bay in the former North West Territories of Canada.

Having just completed The Polar Race he had taken a rowing machine out on to the ice. A friend seeing him, joked, “What are you going to do next Jock? Row to the Pole!”

From that moment the idea of the challenge alongside the chance to highlight climate change in the region took root in Jock’s mind. Not a man to lose sight of a challenge he has worked tirelessly to make this expedition a reality.

Jock Wishart as interviewed in CNN discusses the gear and challenges of his particular goal -

Who ‘Owns’ The North Pole?

June 24th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in Current Events, IN THE NEWS

This National Geographic opinion piece by Enric Sala raises an interesting question. Can any one country lay claim to an area once remote, ecologically fragile, and of great significance to the entire globe?

As he states, the Copenhagen Post reports that the country of Denmark has stated an intention to lay claim to the area, a move likely to be challenged by Russian, Canada, Greenland, and the United States as geographic neighbors all interested in the oil and other natural resources of the Arctic Area.

From National Geographic –

The North Pole and surrounding waters are international waters that do not belong to any country. Coastal countries have the rights to the marine resources up to 200 nautical miles offshore, according to the 1982 UN Convention of the Law of the Sea – that’s their exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Beyond the EEZs, the sea belongs to no nation. However, the Law of the Sea allows some nations to extend their claims if their continental shelf extends into international waters beyond their EEZ. Under this clause, Russia has claimed the resources on the seabed and the sea around the Lomonosov ridge, an underwater mountain ridge crossing the Arctic.

The rights of any one country to claim the Northern Pole area is sure to be an ongoing global debate. With climate change opening up previously inaccessible shipping lanes, and governments such as the United States House of Representatives passing bills to allow for increased oil drilling, this conversation will be ongoing and tumultuous.

Field Update, Narwhal and Beluga

June 20th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in AK PRODUCTS & SERVICES, Arctic Animals, Photographers

Our team is currently at the floe edge in Arctic Bay through the rest of this month, and have been posting incredible images of the Beluga and Narwhal they’re observing! Follow us on Facebook for even more photos and updates direct from the source.

Travelling over the sea ice from the floe edge to the AK base camp 10km back from the edge

Previously – Thomas Lennartz writes on the allure of the Arctic and why he keeps going back.

Arctic Bay Panoramic

June 13th, 2011 | By Tristan Crane | Filed in Recent Trips, TRIPS

Arctic Kingdom expedition leader Thomas Lennartz is in the field and posting photos on our facebook page, check there for more exclusive photo content and periodic updates.

Thomas has this to say about this incredible panoramic photograph -

Sitting at 73°02′11″N 085°09′09″W..(literally at the top of Baffin Island) we are here in Arctic Bay to set out to see the Narwhal and Beluga at the Admiralty Inlet floe edge.
The Inuktitut name for Arctic Bay is Ikpiarjuk which means “the pocket”. This name describes the high hills that surround the almost landlocked bay. To the southeast, the flat-topped King George V Mountain dominates the landscape of the hamlet.