Lake Placid, NY, Jan 17, 2012 — Snowy owls from the arctic tundra are showing up in northern states this winter. More than two dozen sightings of the large, stoic owls have been reported from Lake Champlain to Lake Ontario since October.

Todd Moe talks with Lake Placid birder Larry Master, an expert on owls, about Snowy Owls and other owl visitors from further north this time of year.  Go to full article

Shishmaref, AK, Jul 22, 2009 — Yesterday, we reported that Arctic sea ice is melting faster than scientists (already alarmed at its disappearance) had expected. The National Snow and Ice Data Center says the rate has accelerated to 11.7% per decade.

That is far too fast for Native Americans who live along the Artic ice, on permafrost that's also thawing rapidly. Environmental biologist Jon Rosales teaches at St. Lawrence University. He spent this past spring getting a first hand look at effects of climate change in northern Alaska. He visited three villages on the Seward Peninsula, the part of Alaska that reaches west toward Siberia. It is our end of what used to be the land bridge between the two continents. He told Martha Foley that even in late spring, he says, the snow was horizontal. But, still, everything is too warm.  Go to full article

Pasadena, CA, Jul 21, 2009 — A NASA study finds that Arctic ice is melting faster than expected. Mark Brush reports.  Go to full article

Anchorage, AK, Jul 21, 2009 — Studies from NASA and many other U-S agencies report the Arctic ice is melting at a rapid rate. Scientists say it's the most visible and dramatic evidence of global warming. One of the symbols of climate change in the Arctic is the polar bear. Lester Graham talked with the senior polar bear scientist with the U-S Geological Survey, Steven Amstrup, about the future of the bear.  Go to full article

Jul 30, 2008 — The Arctic is melting this summer. But, that melting is not as severe as it could be. Lester Graham reports a haze filters out some of the sun's rays.  Go to full article

May 21, 2008 — Polar bear researchers off Alaska's northern coast found striking differences in sea ice conditions recently. Lori Townsend reports.  Go to full article

Jan 15, 2008 — For centuries, nations sent ships in search of the elusive Northwest Passage, a short-cut to Asia through the ice-laden seas above Canada. Perhaps the most famous attempt was led by Sir John Franklin, an experienced explorer left who England on his third Arctic expedition in 1845. With a crew of 129 volunteers, he set out in two specially-outfitted ships, with enough provisions to last for at least three years. They never returned. Over time, tantalizing clues emerged: a brief message, left in a stone tower, stating Franklin died in 1847. Oral accounts from natives who encountered sick and dying foreigners. The possibility of cannibalism, which shocked Victorian sensibilities. A modern exhumation of three frozen graves suggesting bodies and minds had been affected by lead poisoning from improperly tinned food. The hunt for evidence and answers continues to this day.

Retired geophysicist and Arctic researcher Dr. George Hobson has spent decades studying the Franklin Expedition. These days, he's a popular speaker on tourist expeditions to Beechy Island and other points of Arctic interest. Hobson will give a lecture Wednesday night in Manotick, Ontario. Ottawa correspondent Lucy Martin chatted with him among a local library's collection of books about Franklin and his fate.  Go to full article

May 11, 2007 — New research shows Arctic sea ice is melting much faster than predicted by computer models. Rebecca Williams reports the researchers say that could accelerate the impacts of global warming.  Go to full article

Apr 16, 2007 — The Arctic is among the regions hit hardest by early climate change. Inuit artists from Nunavut, Labrador and other Arctic territories are eyewitnesses to warmer winters. They gather in Ottawa twice a year for meetings of the Inuit Art Foundation. Lucy Martin spent an afternoon with the artists last April. They told her their lives are already changing. Note: The Inuit Art Foundation artists return to Ottawa for their "Arts Alive" celebration this Saturday, April 21, from 10 to 4.  Go to full article

Nov 15, 2004 — Despite warnings that global warming is causing the Arctic to warm up at twice the rate of the rest of the world, the Bush administration is not changing its policies on emissions in the U.S. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium's Lester Graham reports.  Go to full article