Operational Problems in the Arctic Islands

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Abstract Geological exploration on the Arctic Islands encounters many operationalproblems that are new to most Canadian geologists. Although conditions aresimilar to those of the tundra on the northern Mainland, climatic andphysiographic differences impose modifications in transportation to the field, in planned reconnaissance and detailed surface studies, and in livingconditions in the field. The relative merits of small single-winged aircraftand helicopters are discussed; the change of method of field work with changeof ice conditions from spring to fall are examined; the effect of varioustopographies and bedrock on relative ease of movement are considered. Introduction Recorded exploration of the Arctic Islands has been in progress for nearly450 years. It began with the search for a Northwest Passage to the Indies, asearch that was forced upon European entrepreneurswhen they realizedthat not only was the earth spheroidal but that a major continent intervenedand barred the western route between Europe and Asia. In the words of Taylor(1955, p. 8), … North America, in European eyes, was not so much a goal to beachieved as an obstacle to be surmounted." Polar exploration was furtheradvanced by whaling and sealing enterprises and by the concerted efforts of themany expeditions that attempted to reach the North Pole. These numerous voyagesestablished the basic cartography of the Islands, but yielded only a smatteringof geological knowledge from widely separated points. It was not until thepost-war years of the late 1940's that the first long-range, systematicallyplanned, geological exploration of the Islands was instrumented by the Canadian Government. Today, through the efforts of the Geological Survey of Canada, whose work has been immeasurably aided by complete photographic coverage of the Islands, regional geological reconnaissance of the Arctic Archipelago is nearlycompleted. This work was obviously basic to the opening of the Islands'territory to oil and gas exploration and to the acquisition of lands bycompanies interested in this exploration. The value of the Geological Survey'sexploration is not, however, limited to geology; their operations on the Islands have provided us with important and valuable data on methods of groundand aerial transportation, on the climate, on the terrain, and on logistics. Inshort, they have provided us with the basic knowledge of how to live and workin the area.