The climate of the Arctic. Nature and ice of the Arctic

The Arctic is a geographic region of the Earth that adjoins the North Pole. Territorial waters of the district include part of the water area of all oceans, except for the Indian Ocean. Also to this physico-geographical zone are the outskirts of the continents of North America and Eurasia. The area of the Arctic occupies about 27 million square meters. Km. The southern part of the region is covered by impassable tundra.

Fauna and flora

The climate of the Arctic is known for its severity. That is why in this area the plant world is represented only by mosses, herbs, lichens and weeds. Here, low temperatures even in summer. This causes such a scarce variety of flora. In the arctic zone there are no trees or fir trees, only dwarf shrubs. Most of the land is a lifeless desert. The only flowering plant is the polar poppy.

The animal world is slightly more rich in species. It is home to both hares, white deer, and wild deer, and polar bears. The rarest representatives of the fauna are the snow sheep and musk ox, as well as a small fluffy hamster-lemming. From carnivores you can distinguish wolves and Arctic foxes. Polar bears prefer meat of animals to sea fish. In addition, in the Arctic region live ermine, wolverines and gophers long-tailed. Most birds nest in the tundra. Most often these are migratory species. In the waters of the Arctic live walruses and seals, as well as narwhals, beluga whales, killer whales and mustachioed whales.

Temperature readings

One of the coldest and snow-covered parts of the world is the Arctic. In summer here the temperature rarely rises above zero degrees. In this area, there is a low balance of radiation. Glaciers, snow deserts, tundra vegetation prevail.

In winter, the warmest month is January. The average temperature in the Arctic at this time ranges from -2 to -5 degrees. The adjacent water area is much colder than air. In the Barents Sea, the temperature is -25 degrees Celsius, in Greenland and Chukotsky - to -36 degrees C, in the Canadian and Siberian basins to -50 degrees Celsius. The lowest values are observed in the northern zone of the water area. There, the temperature often reaches -60 degrees. The climate of the Arctic can change at any minute due to breakthroughs of deep warm cyclones. In this case, the temperature rises by 7-10 degrees C. In summer, the highest indicators are +2 ... + 3 degrees C.

Climatic anomalies

Meteorological indicators of the glacier zone experienced serious fluctuations over the past several hundred years. We can say that the Arctic climate is gradually changing. This is a global problem that has no solution.

Over the past 600 years there have been half a dozen significant warmings that directly affect the entire planet. Such meteorological fluctuations can be followed by global cataclysms, capable of harming all life on Earth. It should be noted that the climate of the Arctic affects the speed of rotation of the planet and the general atmospheric circulation. According to scientists, a serious meteorological leap in the glacial zone should occur in 2030. Even the most minimal consequences will be significant for the planet. The fact is that the temperature indicators in the Arctic are inexorably rising every year. And the dynamics of changes over the last centuries has increased by 2 times. A sharp warming will lead to the extinction of all types of vegetation and many fauna in the region.

Nature of the Arctic

The relief of the water area is inhomogeneous, curved. The most significant is the shelf with continental islands, located along such seas as the Barents, Chukchi, Laptev, Kara and Siberian. The deepest depression is located in the central part of the Arctic basin - more than 5.5 km. As for the relief of land, it is predominantly flat.

The nature of the Arctic is rich in natural resources. First of all, it is gas and oil. In the Arctic these undeveloped energy resources are an incommensurable quantity. According to preliminary forecasts of experts, there are more than 90 billion barrels of oil. Nevertheless, the extraction of resources in this region is extremely difficult. In addition, this process is dangerous from the point of view of global ecology. In the event of an oil spill , it will be virtually impossible to eliminate the accident due to high waves, numerous icebergs and dense fog.

Arctic ice

As you know, the water area of the region is literally full of icebergs of various sizes. However, in the Arctic waters there is also a so-called ice cap, which reflects most of the sun's rays. That's why the planet does not warm up to critical temperatures.

It can be stated with certainty that the Arctic ice plays a crucial role in the existence of all life on Earth. In addition, they control the circulation of water in the World Ocean. It is worth noting that over the past 25 years the level of Arctic ice has decreased by three-quarters of the total mass. Today, the cap covers only 5,100 thousand square meters. Km. However, this is not enough to ensure that the Earth does not get warmer every year more and more quickly.

The dead zone is conquered

For many centuries the Arctic was considered a lifeless territory on which people will not be able to survive for several days. Nevertheless, this myth was dispelled over time. In the 16th century, as a result of a long expedition carried out by Russian navigators, the first map of the Arctic Ocean was compiled. In 1937 over the Arctic, flights were conducted by the crews of Baidukov and Chkalov.

Today, several drifting stations installed on floating ice floes operate in this region. Complexes include small houses for polar explorers and special research equipment.