Monthly Archives: July 2009

Northeast Passage: First report from Neil Hamilton

31 July, 2009GeneralNortheast Passage expedition, WWFuser

By Neil Hamilton

The adventure has begun!

Inauspiciously……..

My flight from Oslo was cancelled, but eventually I arrived in Kirkenes, one of the biggest fishing ports in the Barents Sea. Perhaps 40 Russian trawlers were tied up at the wharf, together with the Nordlys, the famous Hurtigruten ship that travels along the coast of Norway. The weather is warm (about 15 ^oC), grey and overcast with rain showers.

It is wonderful to meet up with Ola, Anders and Hannibal again after a couple of months since our shakedown cruise to St Petersburg. Explorer of Sweden is berthed alongside a fishing boat in a quiet part of the harbour, the crew having a well earned rest after sailing from Sweden via Olso and then circumnavigating Svalbard. Ola and Hannibal’s families have come to spent a few days with them before we leave on the expedition. Minor repairs and adjustments have been made, and lots and lots of shopping: 3 months worth of food, water, and other supplies are now on board. The boat is pretty crowded!

In preparation for the expedition I have been watching the ice charts every day for the North East Passage for the past couple of months and we are now pretty sure that this year is going to be almost as bad, or perhaps even worse, than 2007, the year all the records were broken. The Kara Sea is already clear of ice, as is much of the Laptev Sea. The two ‘pinch points’, the Kara Gate south of Novaya Zemlya and Cape Chelyuskin north of the Taimyr peninsula, are almost free – and it is still July. This makes me feel torn between the tragedy of the loss of the ice and all that this implies, and the anticipation of being able to ‘do the impossible’: sail through the legendary North East Passage.

So now it’s just a matter of settling in to my (very narrow) bunk, unpack my gear, and work out how to get all the communications and film gear working. We hope to be able to send regular updates (blogs, pictures, and video), plus keeping the Twitter channel buzzing with news throughout the voyage.

Northwest Passage update: Barrow science

24 July, 2009GeneralNorthwest Passage expedition, WWFuser

This summer, WWF is helping support two expeditions that will take on some of the world’s most difficult waters, to see first-hand the effects of Arctic climate change. One expedition is sailing across the top of Russia, a journey of 6000 nautical miles through the Northeast Passage, while another is attempting a west to east transit of the Northwest Passage, also by sailing boat, a journey of about 7,000 nautical miles.
Tom Arnbom of Sweden was on the ‘Explorer of Sweden’ though the Northeast Passage, as was WWF Arctic Programme Director Neil Hamilton for much of the trip, replaced near the end by WWF polar bear coordinator Geoff York. On the ‘Silent Sound’ Cameron Dueck of the Open Passage Expedition is filing regular stories from the Northwest passage. Come back for photos and stories throughout the summer, and follow the progress of the boats as they follow in the wake of some of history’s most intrepid explorers.
By Cameron Dueck
Silent Sound is at anchor in Barrow, Alaska, America’s most northerly point
and one of the front lines of the battle between oil companies and citizens
concerned about the side effects of oil and gas exploration.
Barrow is the administrative centre of the North Slope Borough, which of
course includes the Prudhoe oil and gas facility and other North Slope
fields. Exploration has become the bread and butter of this area, but with
it have come a whole host of worries that Barrow scientists are trying to
address.
Heightening the concerns for residents is the fact that a large percentage
of the Inuit living here remain subsistence hunters, and they rely on the
animals and land around them for food.
“The mayor is opposed to some of this further development, but it is in
federal waters, and it is coming. What we’re trying to do is get more
science done,” said Karla Kolash, special assistant to the mayor of the
North Slope Borough. “We don’t think and oil spill can be cleaned up in
these weather and ice conditions up here.”
Bowhead whale and caribou populations are two of the more important species
for local hunters, and in both cases there is concern that exploration
activity affects their migratory habits.
Oil and gas exploration is ramping up in Canada, and Alaskans say that
communities across the border could learn something from their experiences.
“Stay involved, do what you can to be in the decisions making process,”
Kolash said. Our fear is that one day they’ll just run right over us.”
Scientists here are increasingly combining traditional science and knowledge
gathered from hunters and elders and combining this with scientific facts to
get a fuller picture of the wildlife.
At the Ilisagvik College, sitting on a windswept spit of land that protects
a shallow lagoon just north of town, much of the work focuses on wildlife
research and preservation and finding out how modern human activity affects
the Arctic environment. Even as they study the negative effects of oil
exploration, funds that come in from selling these exploration rights are an
important source of funding for their research.
Cyd Hanns is a research assistant who spends much of her time looking at
contaminant levels, a concern in the Arctic because ocean currents deposit
pollutants in the North.
“We’ve begun testing in particular the parts of the animals that people here
eat,” Hanns said.

Tom Arnbom, Northeast Passage day 10: Richness and diversity

24 July, 2009GeneralNortheast Passage expedition, svalbard, WWFuser

Reindeer grazing at Alkehornet on Spitsbergen, Svalbard. Photo by Tom Arnbom

Several of the richest fishing waters in the world can be found in the Arctic. In America, Alaskan pollock is one of the largest American fisheries species and in Europe the Barents Sea is the source for an enormous amount of fish. It is very important to manage these populations well and not overfish them, like many other fisheries around the world which have totally collapsed.
However, another threat is the climate change which will increase the sea water temperature in the Arctic – which will then cause fish populations to move further north to colder water. In Alaska, if the pollock population moves north into Russian territory, America might lose a very valuable fishery. A similar problem could occur if the cod in the Barents Sea moves into Russian waters. There is a lot of money involved and political conflicts may arise from this.
In Alaska, the fishermen have decided not to fish in the areas which are now opening up in the Arctic as the summer sea ice melts away. The fishermen first want to know what fishing quotas are sustainable to fish, before a commercial fishery opens. Otherwise, the normal practice would be to start fishing as soon as possible – before any restictions are in place.

Tom Arnbom, Northeast Passage day 8: Fantastic Mr Arctic fox!

23 July, 2009GeneralNortheast Passage expedition, WWFuser

Voyaging around Svalbard. Photo by Tom Arnbom

DAY 8

We managed through the storm and found a safe harbour. At most it was blowing 26 m/s which is full storm, and the sea water temperature was minus one. We lingered around the coast of Edgeöya and finally anchored at Disco, a bird colony of kittiwakes.
The gulls are breeding in a canyon and the noise and foul smell is part of the local flavour. A curious arctic fox checks us out before heading to the colony to find some eggs or injured birds. The fox’s fur is brown – this is its summer fur. In winter the arctic fox is pure white. Here on Svalbard the Arctic fox is doing fine, while in Scandinavia the population is very low – on the brink of becoming extinct – although last summer was a relatively good one for the Scandinavian population.

An arctic fox with its brown summer coat. Photo by Tom Arnbom

After intensive hunting of artic foxes for their fur in Sweden, Finland and Norway, the population was very low – in addition the lemming and vole populations was severely reduced for almost twenty years so the arctic fox also almost became extinct in Sweden and Norway. In Finland no breeding has taken place for several years now.
The future looks pretty bleak for the Scandinavian population of the arctic fox. The tree-line is climbing higher and higher which is bad in two ways. First, the open tundra habitat is shrinking, which is where the arctic fox lives – and on top of that, with the treeline comes the red fox which competes with its smaller cousin. The red fox takes over the dens of the arctic fox, and it can even kill the arctic fox.
But here on Svalbard, the arctic foxes are thriving, at least during the summer when the bird colonies are full of eggs and chicks.

Tom Arnbom, Northeast Passage day 5 & 6: Close encounters of the bear kind

22 July, 2009From the field, General, Polar bearsNortheast Passage expedition, svalbard, WWFuser

A polar bear in the distance - but it was soon to come a lot closer! Photo by Tom Arnbom

Tom Arnbom of WWF Sweden is spending some time with the team on the Northeast Passage expedition. He will be blogging regularly for the Arctic Programme’s Sending the Signal blog while he is there. Here is his update from the fifth and sixth day of the expedition.
DAY 5
Watch a video on the website of Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet of Tom and the Explorer team’s close encounter with the bear
After another beautiful night with the midnight sun, I get a few hours sleep before it is time for breakfast. BUT what a breakfast! While having muesli I see two different polar bears – that is luxury above all means. One of them, is like frozen to the ground, not moving a single bit, just beside a breathing hole for a seal. The white bear is hunting ringed seals. I see the seal coming up in an alternative breathing hole 15 metres from the large predator. But the polar does not move. After 15 minutes, the bear gives up and linger off. Not bad for breakfast time.

Hannibal goes in for an icy plunge. Photo by Tom Arnbom

It is getting colder, and the long johns are on all the time. A cold northerly cuts through all our clothing. We are heading south to get away from the bad weather which is forecasted. Hannibal does not care about the chill, and makes a dive north of the 80th latitude.
DAY 5 – LATE NIGHT
Close to Hinlopen, we force the bow into the sea ice and stay put. At a small distance away, a polar bear is lying on its back with all four paws in the air and scratching its back. It seems not to care less about us.
Suddenly, the bear changes its behaviour. It stands up, sniffs and looks at the boat Explorer of Sweden. Slowly it walks in a zig-zag track towards us. It comes closer and closer – a hundred metres turns into fifty metres, twenty metres. We are all on alert and barely breathing – only whispers. Both Ola and Per-Magnus bring out their weapons and other protective gear – such as sound blasters, both are ready just in case …
The polar bear gets more and more curious and it makes its way all the way to our sailing vessel. It is a bit nervy and the adrenalin is flowing. When it puts the paws on the bow it was close to the limit where we felt safe – the polar bear is incredibly fast and strong so you need margins!
The bear went away from the boat but came back again, this time with higher speed. Ola honked the boat horn – the sound blast is very loud – but the bear barely flinched. So Per-Magnus threw a sound blaster in font of the bear – the high bang surprised the bear – which stops within a metre.

The bear comes close to the boat. Photo by Tom Arnbom

In less than a second the bear runs off away from these ”unfriendly” humans who do not want to get a close contact. The bear stopped after a hundred metres and turned around, gave us a long look and then slowly wandered off to the glacier at the horizon. An encounter to remember – both for us and the bear.

The bear sniffs the air and comes even closer! Photo by Tom Arnbom

The wind picked up, blowing half storm and the seawater temperature is now below zero degrees. Freezing.
DAY 6
After the close encounter with the polar bear we steam south. The wind is now really strong, storm and the water temperature is now the unbelievable minus 1.4 degrees. Not my cup of tea for a swim. It is very very cold and we do not go outside voluntarily.
We sail by an endless glacier front. The colour is ice blue. I just read that during the last five years the Arctic sea ice has lost around 15 cm per year in thickness, that is unbelievably fast. It is going much quicker than anybody has foreseen. This means that the annual ice is dominating the Arctic, and the sea ice can therefore melt off very quickly if the ”right” conditions come. When the white sea ice melts away the sea is opening up and the dark blue water will be warmed up by the sun. The sea will in its turn melt off more sea ice, a process which might not be halted. But we can halt the climate changes if we want.
A first step is a very good climate agreement in Copenhagen in December this year.

Viewing the 'endless glacier' from the boat. Photo by Tom Arnbom

Tom Arnbom, Northeast passage day 2, 3 & 4: Sighting polar bears and walrus

21 July, 2009From the field, General, Polar bearsNortheast Passage expedition, svalbard, WWFuser

The midnight sun on Svalbard

Norwegian scientist Geir Wing Gabrielsen. Photo by Tom Arnbom.

He tells us that in addition to the climate change directly affecting the escalating melting of sea ice, pollutants are having a larger effect on animals as a result climate change. The reason is that many of the top predators have a large storage of body fat, and in non-degradable pollutants are stored in the fat.
When the animals have difficulty find their preferred food, such as polar bears and ivory gulls, the pollutants find their way out in the organs, when the stored fat is all used up. The scientists in Ny-Ålesund have seen changes in some species already due to this heavier pollutant burden.
In addition to climate change, more pollutants are expected to come with currents, both in the air and in the water.
DAY 4
Walrus galore. Today we have been lucky to see some walrus ashore but also on a small ice floe. The Atlantic walrus was heavily hunted for several hundred years before it was protected. Today, they are slowly coming back in numbers, especially in Svalbard.

Walrus on the ice on Svalbard. Photo by Tom Arnbom

Another walrus rests on the icy shore. Photo by Tom Arnbom

In eastern Russia and in Alaska, the Pacific walrus population is having problems. The main one is that the arctic sea water is warmer than before, which causes the summer sea ice to melt. Walruses usually rest on the sea ice between feeding dives, but when the sea ice is gone, walruses come ashore in large colonies to rest. The haul-outs can be far away from the feeding areas, and when many animals come together – there is a risk that they might stamp each other to death. This has happened during the last few years, and several thousand walruses have died.

The magnificent spectacle of the Svalbard coastline. Photo by Tom Arnbom

Northwest Passage update: Wales, Alaska

16 July, 2009GeneralNorthwest Passage expedition, WWFuser

This summer, WWF is helping support two expeditions that will take on some of the world’s most difficult waters, to see first-hand the effects of Arctic climate change. One expedition is sailing across the top of Russia, a journey of 6000 nautical miles through the Northeast Passage, while another is attempting a west to east transit of the Northwest Passage, also by sailing boat, a journey of about 7,000 nautical miles.
Tom Arnbom of Sweden was on the ‘Explorer of Sweden’ though the Northeast Passage, as was WWF Arctic Programme Director Neil Hamilton for much of the trip, replaced near the end by WWF polar bear coordinator Geoff York. On the ‘Silent Sound’ Cameron Dueck of the Open Passage Expedition is filing regular stories from the Northwest passage. Come back for photos and stories throughout the summer, and follow the progress of the boats as they follow in the wake of some of history’s most intrepid explorers.
By Cameron Dueck
As the Silent Sound approached the Bering Strait we had to make a
choice. Little Diomede or Wales, Alaska? A little research showed that the
community in Diomede would charge us $100 per crew to come ashore.
Meanwhile in Wales, the western most community on the North American continent, we had a contact that could introduce us to local community leaders, so we opted for Wales.
And in Wales, where weather beaten homes cling to the sand dunes at the foot
of the Brooks Mountains, we heard stories of how climate change looks from
the ground. The 150 people living there are largely subsistence hunters, and
their oral history of the place goes back generations, so they know a change
in nature when they see one.
Frank Oxereok Jr was one of the hunters that picked us up from the beach
after we made a harrowing landing in the surf on our small rowboat. Baseball
cap pulled low and sitting astride a quad bike, he was the picture of the
modern Inupiat hunter. He’s not a climate change expert or scientist, but he
had a long list of changes he’s seen in the land and weather in recent
years.
“There is much more southerly wind now than five years ago. We get more
southerlies in the winter, and this causes all the ice to bank up on the
shores and we can’t go out and hunt,” he said. “Something is happening. We
hear a lot about global warming. All I know is that when you get cold and
warm weather together you get wind like that.”
Little Diomede, which lies in the shadow of Russia’s Big Diomede in the
middle of the Bering Strait, did not have an airfield last year because the
ice was too thin. In normal years they smooth out the sea ice and planes
land on the ice right in front of the village.
“The shore ice is getting thinner and thinner every year,” said Ruben
Ozenna, a longhaired hunter nicknamed Soup by his friends and family. “When
we were young we’d go chip a hole in the ice for ice fishing and it would
take us a whole day to get down to the water. Used to be deeper than I’m
tall, now it’s no problem to dig through.”
Here, all the stories centre on hunting, and woven into the stories are
signs of the changing times as well as bits of family history. And now, they
also contain nuggets of information about climate change.
“The thin ice makes it a lot more dangerous for hunting. You have to work a
lot faster now, because the weather can change so fast. You can end up
adrift on a floe. My uncle when out hunting and he ended up floating to
Point Hope. Then he went there a few more times after that because he found
a wife there.”
But most worrying to them both are the changes in the wildlife they rely on
for food. Warmer temperatures mean southern species are moving north, they
said.
“We saw sea otters on the ice this spring. That’s unheard of. It’s the first
year we’ve seen that. Next thing you know we’ll have sharks up here,” Soup
says, shaking his head in disbelief.
Find out more about the expeditions
Official site: Northeast Passage 2009
Official site: Open Passage Expedition

Tom Arnbom, Northeast Passage day 1: Leaving Longyearbyen

13 July, 2009GeneralNortheast Passage expedition, svalbard, WWFuser

The sailing vessel The Explorer

It is a beautiful day and along the cliff edge east of Longyearbyen there are several swarms of dovkies (little auk). They look like black smoke flying back and forth in the sky. I am onboard the sailing vessel Explorer which will bring the expedition members to the Pacific through the Northeast Passage. We are about to head north to Ny-Ålesund and visit scientists to know the latest about climate changes. Yesterday, I met a scientist on Polarstern (a large german research vessel) and he told me that they have discovered large areas of bubbles with methane west of Svalbard. It is to early to say if it has been going on for a long time or is a new “thing”. They will head out to research the areas to find out more.
Methane is a very active green house gas and more and more evidence show that this gas is leaking out in many places in the Arctic. I will come back on this.
Hopefully we will encounter walruses to night – but more on this in the next blog.

A tale of two passages

9 July, 2009Generalbeaufort, Northwest Passage expedition, WWFuser

First blog from the Open Passage Expedition: Ice report

The Canadian Ice Service issued their July ice report last week, and it
shows a faster than normal breakup in many parts of the Arctic even though
temperatures were normal in late June. Some parts are opening up a bit
slower than normal, but from our position aboard the Silent Sound the key
ice choke points in the Western Arctic appear to be opening up well on time.
As we’re attempting a West to East transit, we’re most interested in the
areas around Pt Barrow and the Amundsen Gulf at the moment.
The report says that the breakup for the Western Arctic is running one to
three weeks ahead of schedule in many areas, and as much as a month fast in
isolated regions. Point Barrow, normally a key point holding back traffic
from the Bering Sea, sounds like it is mostly open, so we’re rushing to get
North as we expected we’d have to wait for that.
In Amundsen Gulf the fast ice fractured more than a week early. “A 60 to
100-mile wide area containing very little ice developed along the southern
Beaufort Sea west of Banks Island all the way to just east of Point Barrow,”
the report says. Music to a sailor’s ears, but alarming for those that
depend on the ice platform for spring hunting or migration.
The ice service predicts that the Bering Strait ice pack will remain well
offshore, allowing us easy sailing to Point Barrow. By late July all the ice
will have fractured in the southern route of the Northwest Passage from
western Barrow Strait through Peel Sound, across Victoria Strait, Queen Maud
and Coronation Gulfs. It sounds like it could be another year of clear
sailing for pleasure yachts.
Elsewhere in the Arctic, breakup is about a week behind schedule in Hudson
Bay and about normal in Davis Strait.
The breakup pattern for the west Greenland Coast, Nares Strait, northern
Baffin Bay, eastern Barrow Strait and Cumberland Sound is three to four
weeks ahead of normal with only isolated patches of broken fast ice showing
in those areas. Elsewhere, the breakup pattern is normal.
Find out more about the expeditions
Official site: Northeast Passage 2009
Official site: Open Passage Expedition