In the strictest sense, the Arctic is all of the Earth north of the Arctic Circle, which is located at 66 degrees, 32 minutes North Latitude. However, there are other definitions to suit specific scientific or political interests. For instance, the U.S. Congress has decreed that all of the Bering Sea, which extends southward to about 53 degrees North Latitude, is part of the Arctic for internal U.S. planning and budgeting purposes.

The Arctic environment is unique in many ways and offers the opportunity for a great many discoveries about how the physical and biologic environments function under the "extreme" conditions found in the Arctic. Several species of animals are unique to the Arctic (e.g., polar bear, walrus, musk ox) and many species of birds have their summer home there.

The Arctic is inhabited by several different groups of indigenous people, and also by relatively recent immigrants of mostly European background. In Alaska, for example, indigenous people account for about 70% or more of the total population in mainland areas bordering the Bering, Chukchi, or Beaufort Seas. In Russia, only 15% or fewer of the inhabitants along the north coast are indigenous people.

The Arctic Circle is an imaginary line at latitude at 66° 32~33' North (depending on the earth's wobble) defined by the northernmost point where you can still see the sun on winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, December 21.

Studies now underway in the Arctic should lead to more reliable forecasts of weather over the Arctic and in heavily populated mid-latitude areas. We will learn more about how the Arctic influences the global climate and achieve greater insight about the climate our children will experience. We will be better able to quantify, manage and use the natural resources of the Arctic.

There is no simple answer to this question. Good records of temperature and precipitation are available for the last 50 years, but data quantity and quality are diminished in prior years. It is clear that the Arctic has undergone significant change in the last 50 years, but the changes differ in different regions in the Arctic. For example, Alaska has experienced significant warming over the past 30 years, with average wintertime temperatures about 6 degrees warmer now than in the 1960's.

The Arctic is a vast, ice-covered ocean that is surrounded by tree-less, frozen land, which is often covered with snow and ice. The rigors of this harsh environment are a challenge to living, working and performing research in the Arctic. None the less, the Arctic is an ecosystem that teems with life including organisms living in the ice, fish and marine mammals living in the sea, birds, land animals such as wolves, caribou and polar bears, and human societies.

The word arctic means "bear" in ancient Greek. It refers to the constel- lations of the Great Bear and Little Bear, which you can find in the night sky near the North Star. The North Star, currently Polaris, in the Alpha Ursae Minoris, or Little Bear Constellation, is also known as the Lode Star or Pole Star, and is part of the Little Dipper, 431 light years away.

Significant reductions in ozone content in the stratosphere above the Arctic have been observed during the late winter and early spring (January-March) in 6 of the last 9 years. However, these reductions, typically 20-25%, are much smaller than those observed currently each spring over the Antarctic (the ozone hole). The difference between ozone content in the two polar regions (see figure below) is caused by dissimilar weather patterns.

The Arctic situation may be different. I have not studied it close enough to comment. From what I know it is different, and more observations have been made over the last several years to back up what is being researched there.

For humans that live in the Arctic, conditions there dictate lifestyle to a very great extent. Residents must cope with very low temperatures and constant darkness in the winter, and temperatures above freezing and constant daylight in the summer. While temperatures are below freezing, the frozen, snow covered ground, ice covered rivers, and shore-fast ice are utilized for transportation using dog sleds (traditionally) or snowmobiles (recently).

Arctic is the name of the exciting line of Shepherd Color pigments that reflect the sun's infrared energy. These pigments allow the formulation of dark-colored systems that minimize heat build-up and meet Energy Star requirements for solar reflectivity.

We use 15-passenger vans and a gear truck for each expedition. The truck, which we call the commissary truck, carries all the food, water, and tents we need as well as our mobile kitchen and our personal gear. It also carries our scientific equipment. These include GPS units, a selective library, many art supplies, and minidisc recorders for recording digital audio.

Contrary to popular belief, the Arctic is not all snow and ice. During the winter it is true that much of the land in the far north is under snow and ice. However, a large portion of the Arctic is comprised of forested and tundra regions where numerous plants, shrubs and trees grow.

While the Arctic may seem like quite an inhospitable place to live, there are several large cities inside the Arctic Circle, including Barrow, Alaska; Tromso, Norway; and Muramansk and Salekhaard in Russia. In addition to these large cities, there are numerous other large towns and villages, making the Arctic Circle and sub-arctic regions far from being the barren wastelands that people often imagine.

Trees are unable to survive in the high Arctic because of the extreme low temperatures, high winds and lack of sufficient rainfall. The point beyond which trees are unable to survive is called the treeline, and some researchers use it as the basis for defining where the Arctic begins.

There are several ways people travel in the Arctic. Skiis, kayaks and snowshoes are all forms of transportation invented by Arctic peoples. Today, snowmobiles and fiberglass boats are the most common means of transport throughout the region. However, sleds, skiis, snowshoes and kayaks are still in use.