Arctic

The Arctic is the polar region surrounding the North Pole, encompassing the lands and seas located north of approximately 66° 34′ N, a boundary known as the Arctic Circle. This region includes vast expanses of ocean covered by seasonal or permanent sea ice, treeless tundra landscapes, and some of the coldest environments on Earth. Despite its severity, the Arctic is home to distinctive ecosystems and ancient Indigenous cultures that have adapted to its extreme conditions. It represents one of the planet’s largest remaining wilderness areas and holds significant scientific, ecological and geopolitical importance.

Definition and Etymology

The word Arctic originates from the Greek arktikos, meaning “near the Bear”, a reference to the northern constellations Ursa Major (Great Bear) and Ursa Minor (Little Bear), the latter containing Polaris, the current North Star. Several definitions are used to delineate the region:

• Latitude-based: all territory north of the Arctic Circle.
• Climate-based: regions where the warmest month has an average temperature below 10°C, a threshold that corresponds closely to the northern tree line.
• Ecological: areas defined by the presence of permafrost, tundra vegetation and polar climate patterns.

These criteria reflect both environmental and cultural boundaries, highlighting the Arctic’s complexity as a geographical concept.

Geographical Extent

Travelling eastward from the IERS Reference Meridian, the Arctic encompasses parts of:

• Northern Norway (Nordland, Troms, Finnmark, Svalbard, Jan Mayen)
• Sweden (Västerbotten, Norrbotten, Lapland)
• Finland (North Ostrobothnia, Kainuu, Lapland)
• Russia (Murmansk, Siberia, Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Novaya Zemlya)
• The United States (Alaska)
• Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut)
• Greenland
• Northern Iceland (Grímsey, Kolbeinsey)

At the centre is the Arctic Ocean, surrounded by a wide network of marginal seas and archipelagos. Much of the land has seasonal snow cover, permafrost and tundra vegetation, while its seas undergo dramatic changes in ice extent through the year.

Climate and Environmental Change

The Arctic climate is marked by long, dark winters with extreme cold and short, cool summers with continuous daylight in midsummer. Key climatic features include:

• Low precipitation, mostly as snow
• Winter temperatures that can fall below −40°C
• Higher coastal temperatures influenced by ocean currents
• Frequent winds that lift snow into near-perpetual drift

The Arctic is experiencing some of the fastest climate change on Earth, a phenomenon known as polar amplification. Clear trends include:

• Rapid decline of Arctic sea ice
• Retreat of the Greenland Ice Sheet
• Warming and thawing of permafrost, releasing methane and altering landscapes
• Northward movement of climate zones, causing the ecological Arctic to shrink by approximately tens of kilometres per decade

Predictions for summer sea-ice loss range widely, but many climate models foresee near-complete disappearance between the mid-2030s and the 2060s.

Flora and Fauna

Life in the Arctic shows remarkable adaptations to the extreme environment.
PlantsVegetation consists mainly of dwarf shrubs, mosses, lichens, sedges and hardy herbs, forming the characteristic tundra. Because of short growing seasons and low temperatures:

• Trees cannot survive
• Shrubs reach only modest heights
• Productivity and biodiversity decline sharply toward the pole
• In the coldest areas, vegetation becomes sparse, dominated by nonvascular plants with shallow roots

Plants such as bearberry and Arctic poppies survive at the limits of metabolic activity.
AnimalsArctic wildlife includes:

• Herbivores: caribou/reindeer, muskoxen, Arctic hares, lemmings
• Predators: Arctic foxes, wolves, snowy owls, and grizzly bears
• Marine mammals: polar bears, walruses, seals, narwhals, belugas and other whales
• Birds: diverse migratory and resident species adapted to harsh seasons

Polar bears depend heavily on sea ice for hunting, making them highly vulnerable to ice loss.

Natural Resources

The Arctic contains sizable reserves of oil, natural gas, minerals, freshwater and fish, making it a focal point of resource exploration and international interest. It also includes extensive forests where the subarctic overlaps the region. These opportunities, combined with increasing maritime access due to ice retreat, have intensified geopolitical and economic attention.
However, the region is extremely sensitive to disturbance. Human activity can damage fragile vegetation, disrupt breeding habitats and threaten biodiversity. The Arctic remains vital for maintaining global ecological stability and genetic diversity.

Palaeontology

During the Cretaceous period, the Arctic supported seasonal vegetation and relatively mild conditions. Some dinosaurs, such as Edmontosaurus, Troodon and Hypacrosaurus, may have migrated seasonally to exploit the Arctic summers. Others may have lived year-round at high latitudes, such as regions near the modern Colville River in Alaska, approximately 70° N. Fossil evidence suggests adaptation to long hours of winter darkness and seasonal availability of food.

Indigenous Cultures and Peoples

The Arctic has been inhabited for thousands of years. Early peoples of the North American Arctic included the cultures of the Arctic Small Tool Tradition (AST), such as the Independence I and Pre-Dorset groups. The later Dorset culture (Tuniit) flourished between about 1050 BCE and 550 CE and persisted in isolated areas until around 1500 CE.
Genetic and archaeological evidence indicates that the Sadlermiut, who lived on islands in Hudson Bay into the early 20th century, represented the last direct Dorset descendants.
The Thule culture, originating from Siberia, expanded across the Canadian Arctic around the 9th–10th centuries CE and replaced the Dorset peoples. The Thule are the ancestors of modern Inuit groups, including the Inughuit, Kalaallit and Tunumiit. Their migration extended across Alaska, northern Canada and Greenland. Other circumpolar Indigenous groups include:

• Chukchi
• Evenks
• Iñupiat
• Nenets
• Sámi
• Koryaks
• Gwich’in
• Yupik peoples

These societies developed sophisticated knowledge systems, technologies and cultural practices suited to the Arctic environment.

International Cooperation and Politics

Eight nations possess territory within the Arctic: Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States. These states participate in international frameworks dealing with Arctic governance, security, environmental protection and Indigenous rights. The region is increasingly important in discussions concerning climate policy, maritime navigation and sustainable development.