The Arctic This Week Take Five: Week of September 3, 2018

More mummies found in Russian Arctic

Researchers from the Scientific Center for Arctic Studies working at an archaeological complex in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region, partially situated in Western Siberia, have found six preserved human remains. Probably dating from the 13th century, the bodies include three middle-aged men and a boy aged six or seven. These are not the first bodies to be found at this site, called the Zelenyi Yar archaeological complex, a significant site because of the number of preserved remains found there representing men, women, and children (TASS).

Take 1: As we’ve discussed before, archaeologists in the Arctic are in a race against time to recover artifacts and burials in the rapidly changing landscape. Discoveries like these are important because they help researchers understand how people lived in the past, but they can also reveal information about ancient climate and how people have historically interacted with their environment. In this case, the remains will help illuminate the culture and practices of Western Siberians during the Middle Ages.

Cruise ship runs aground off Arctic coast

An Arctic cruise ship, the Akademik Ioffe, carrying 162 passengers and crew ran aground off the coast of Canada’s Northwest Passage last week. All on board were rescued by two icebreakers from the Canadian Coast Guard and sent to Edmonton, Alberta from where they could fly home. According to the expedition cruise company’s general manager Catherine Lawton, the cruise ship, which doubles as a vessel for scientists in Arctic waters, only sustained damage to its ballast tanks and was never in danger of sinking (TradeWinds News).

Take 2: Investigators from the Canadian Coast Guard have been sent to Kugaaruk, Nunavut, near where the ship ran aground, to ascertain how the accident happened, despite good sailing conditions on the day of the incident. This incident raises more questions about the safety of maritime traffic in Canada’s poorly charted Arctic waters and how search and rescue resources should be allocated across the country. For now, mapping efforts are focused on potential shipping lanes and it appears that tourists in the Arctic will have to accept the risks that the isolated location poses (CBC).

Warming threatens sea-ice from above and below

A recent study published in Science Advances suggests that a pocket of warm water trapped in the Canadian Arctic could cause significant sea ice melt if released. The warm water is about 50m under the surface of the Canada Basin, located in the Arctic Ocean off the coasts of Alaska, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. Although warm water usually floats, this pocket is made up of saltwater, which makes it denser than the cool, fresh water above (CBC).

Take 3: This study found that the pocket of water has been warming over recent years, which is bad news for the existing sea-ice in the Arctic Ocean. Currently, the warm water is ‘archived’ because it is well insulated by the cool freshwater above. As the water warms, the insulating effect will weaken and the heat will rise (Live Science), thus creating a long-term threat to sea-ice from below adding to the other threats Karen discussed in last week’s Take 5.

Arctic leaders agree LNG should fuel the Arctic

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and Russian President Vladimir Putin agree that liquefied natural gas (LNG) should be the fuel of the future Arctic. Both agree that LNG should replace heavy fuel oil (HFO) as the standard bunker oil in the Arctic Ocean because of its environmental benefits over HFO. According to the Clean Arctic Alliance and World Wildlife Fund Russia, who both welcomed the news, LNG is a more environmentally friendly alternative because LNG does not present the risk of oil spills and produces less pollution than HFO (Maritime Executive).

Take 4: This news means that the future of the Arctic Ocean could be shipping LNG powered by LNG. Currently, a US-China trade war threatens to disrupt China’s supply of LNG as Europe seeks to reduce its dependence on Russian LNG. Occurring in parallel with the melting of Arctic sea-ice, this is creating new opportunities for shipping LNG from Northern Russia to Asia just as Russia is looking to increase its presence in the LNG market (Oil Price). Russia is such a fan of LNG that President Putin recently declared the first Sunday of September a professional holiday for workers of the oil and gas industry (TASS).

Polar Silk Road closer than ever

After long discussion and planning, China’s attempts to ship through the Arctic were further realized this week as the first cargo shipped broke ice through the so-called “Polar Silk Road”. The vessel, owned by COSCO SHIPPING Specialized Carriers Co., arrived in the port of Rouen, France on Wednesday as predicted (ECNS, Xinhua Net). Shipping giant, Maersk, also recently announced its intentions to send a shipping vessel through the arctic route (Reuters). These milestones give serious credibility to the long imagined northern shipping route.

Take 5: The routes do significantly reduce the amount of time it takes for a vessel to sail from China to Europe or Russia, but they do not necessarily reduce the total costs. The route is so far from most shipping ports, that vessels on the route do not have the opportunity to make transshipments where they deliver smaller shipments to ports along the main route to increase efficiency (NPR). Further, the route remains extremely dangerous, with the Chinese ship experiencing such rough seas the crew had to suspend some operations on the vessel (ECNS).