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Topic: Arctic

Photo of Front Street in Nome, Alaska, which was underwater on Saturday, September 17, 2022, as the destructive remnants of Typhoon Merbok lashed Nome and many other western Alaska coastal communities.

Human-caused climate change fuels warmer, wetter, stormier Arctic

December 13, 2022

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Photo of Front Street in Nome, Alaska, which was underwater on Saturday, September 17, 2022, as the destructive remnants of Typhoon Merbok lashed Nome and many other western Alaska coastal communities.

Two polar bears on a patch of Arctic ice

Study finds strong marine heatwaves in the Arctic

February 2, 2022

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Two polar bears on a patch of Arctic ice

As Arctic tundra warms and thaws, incursions of shrubs and small trees have created new habitat for beaver, which create ponds and wetlands that further transform the once-frozen landscape.

Arctic Report Card: Climate change transforming Arctic into ‘dramatically different state’

December 14, 2021

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As Arctic tundra warms and thaws, incursions of shrubs and small trees have created new habitat for beaver, which create ponds and wetlands that further transform the once-frozen landscape.

An infographic available for download in this story that shows the different between a stable polar vortex (globe on the left) over the Arctic and a disrupted polar vortex (globe on the right) that results in very cold temperatures southward over the United States and elsewhere.

Understanding the Arctic polar vortex

March 8, 2021

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extreme weather

An infographic available for download in this story that shows the different between a stable polar vortex (globe on the left) over the Arctic and a disrupted polar vortex (globe on the right) that results in very cold temperatures southward over the United States and elsewhere.

A white and gray spotted seal mother and pup in the Bering Sea.

Condition of seals declined during rapid warming in Alaska

February 3, 2021

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A white and gray spotted seal mother and pup in the Bering Sea.

A lone hiker in the distance walks toward a creek with a snowless mountain range in the background. Location: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. Posted on the park's Facebook page on June 30, 2020.(facebook.com/GatesOfTheArcticNPS)

Sea ice loss and extreme wildfires mark another year of Arctic change

December 8, 2020

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climate impacts

A lone hiker in the distance walks toward a creek with a snowless mountain range in the background. Location: Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. Posted on the park's Facebook page on June 30, 2020.(facebook.com/GatesOfTheArcticNPS)

NOAA's 15th Arctic Report Card (2020) continues to chart the transition of a once-reliably frozen into a warmer, wetter, biologically transformed world. Photo: Aerial view of Sheenjek River in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge posted on Facebook June 15, 2020.

December 8: NOAA, partners to announce findings from 2020 Arctic Report Card

December 4, 2020

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NOAA's 15th Arctic Report Card (2020) continues to chart the transition of a once-reliably frozen into a warmer, wetter, biologically transformed world. Photo: Aerial view of Sheenjek River in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge posted on Facebook June 15, 2020.

The German icebreaker Polarstern travels through Arctic sea ice in August 2020 as melt ponds are forming. The Polarstern has been in the Arctic Ocean since September 2019, supporting the international MOSAiC mission to better understand the region’s climate system and its influence on the rest of the world.

Arctic melt season puts focus on sea ice forecasts

August 21, 2020

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The German icebreaker Polarstern travels through Arctic sea ice in August 2020 as melt ponds are forming. The Polarstern has been in the Arctic Ocean since September 2019, supporting the international MOSAiC mission to better understand the region’s climate system and its influence on the rest of the world.

NOAA satellites observed an ozone hole developing over the Arctic March 10, 2020. In this snapshot, places where ozone amounts are less than 280 Dobson Units are shown in red.

Spring 2020 brings rare ozone 'hole' over the Arctic

April 29, 2020

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NOAA satellites observed an ozone hole developing over the Arctic March 10, 2020. In this snapshot, places where ozone amounts are less than 280 Dobson Units are shown in red.

Arctic Ocean sea ice hit its annual peak for this year on March 5, 2020: This color-coded map shows Arctic sea ice concentration on March 5, 2020. Darkest blue indicates open water or ice concentration less than 15 percent. Shades of lighter blue to white indicate 15–100 percent ice cover. The gold line shows the median ice extent for this date over 1981–2010, an area of 6.04 million square miles (15.64 million square kilometers). Median falls “in the middle” because half of the years in the

Arctic sea ice reached its annual high on March 5

March 25, 2020

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Arctic Ocean sea ice hit its annual peak for this year on March 5, 2020: This color-coded map shows Arctic sea ice concentration on March 5, 2020. Darkest blue indicates open water or ice concentration less than 15 percent. Shades of lighter blue to white indicate 15–100 percent ice cover. The gold line shows the median ice extent for this date over 1981–2010, an area of 6.04 million square miles (15.64 million square kilometers). Median falls “in the middle” because half of the years in the

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