'Meltdown' hitting Arctic

2006-04-12 20:01

Washington - It's becoming harder to find the right snow to build an igloo in the Artic, and melting permafrost is turning land into mud.

With climate change, the nature of the Arctic is changing, too, in ways that worry the people who live there.

The Smithsonian's national museum of natural history in Washington is opening two exhibits on Saturday - Arctic: A Friend Acting Strangely and Atmosphere: Change is in the Air - to discuss what is happening to the Earth's climate and how the changes affect people living in the planet's northernmost areas.

The Arctic exhibition title comes from an Inuit word used to describe the changing climate - "uggianaqtuq" - suggesting unexpected behaviour or "a friend acting strangely".

US anthropologist Igor Krupnik said the ocean was eating the Inuit's land, as sea ice melted and storms eroded shorelines and washed away fishing communities.

Sea ice is decreasing

The changing climate means new plants in some areas and changes in migratory routes of animals that people depend on for food, weather is stormier and food sources for polar bears and caribou are changing.

Krupnik said that since the 1950s, air temperatures had warmed over much of the Arctic, rain and snowfall had increased and sea ice was in decline.

Some government scientists have reported political pressure to limit their comments on climate change, said Robert Sullivan, the museum's associate director for public programmes.

Sullivan said however, the exhibitions would not be political: "Here's the data. This is not a political position, it's just scientific data.

"There have been some suggestions the data is unclear; well, the data is not unclear."

Change isn't all bad

Smithsonian staff developed the exhibitions with scientists from the US national oceanic and atmospheric administration, Nasa, and the American national science foundation.

While change is unsettling for many, it isn't necessarily all bad, according to the exhibit.

The exhibit shows, for example, that a reduction in sea ice could improve navigation and industrial development, the growing season lengthens and rich northern fisheries may expand.

The atmospheres exhibit looks at changes in the air, notably the rising level of carbon dioxide. Scientists say this is a major factor in trapping heat from the sun and raising temperatures.

Museum director Cristian Samper said: "Global climate change is one of the most significant challenges humankind has ever faced.

"These landmark exhibitions bring us closer to the science that provides the foundation for understanding how the Earth has changed through time."

- SAPA