The ice was supposed to be solid. That’s what the scientist expected, anyway. Instead, they stepped into water — standing meltwater, in February, in the Arctic. That’s not a weird fluke. That’s the new normal in Svalbard, and it’s happening faster than most of us realize. If that sounds far off, it’s not. Because what happens in the Arctic doesn’t …
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Roughly 720 million years ago (give or take a few tens of millions), Earth plunged into one of the most extreme climate events in its history. In several stages, the planet became a giant snowball, encased in ice from pole to pole for millions of years. What exactly triggered this deep freeze has long divided researchers, but a new study …
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A giant parachute built for Europe’s beleaguered ExoMars mission has aced a drop test with a mock lander during a test campaign in the Arctic. The double parachute system consists of a 50-foot-wide (15-meter) first-stage chute and a secondary 118-foot-wide (35m) chute, which is, according to ESA, the largest ever designed to land an object on Mars. If all goes …
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Sled dogs have been performing a vital role for people living in the Arctic for 9,500 years. In fact, the ubiquity of these dogs across the polar region is a testament to their significance. While there are various breeds of sled dog today, one breed is not only the oldest among them, it may well be the oldest dog breed …
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