Arctic Institute Research Articles

Studies of ice physical properties in Russia and USSR (late XIXth century – 1940). Ice density and porosity

The paper deals with studies conducted in Russia and USSR of ice density, a most important characteristic of ice, and spans a period from the late XIXth century to 1940. It is shown that Russian scientists started their investigations of ice density only around the end of the XIX century, and those studies were often performed with specific applications in mind, e. g. works by B.P. Veinberg and his disciples in Tomsk in 1911–1914. In the USSR, there was a revival of interest in this kind of studies in the late 1920s in connection with explorations of the polar seas. Density measurements were mainly performed by hydrostatic weighing. At the request of N.N. Zubov and I.I. Mesyatsev in 1927 V.V. Shuleikin invented a simple instrument to measure ice density without weighing samples. In the early 1930s, ice porosity became an important field of research aimed at finding the causes of variance of experimental data on ice density. Ice porosity and density were studied using innovative devices developed by V.V. Shuleikin and V.I. Arnold-Alyabiev, which allowed studying ice properties in expedition conditions. The device developed by Arnold-Alyabiev found widespread use in field studies. Ice density and porosity are closely related physical quantities, therefore measuring the porosity of ice allowed researchers to estimate its density. By the end of the 1930s the ice density measurements had developed into a standard procedure of ice studies, which was due in large measure to the plans devised at the All-Union Arctic Institute headed by B.P. Veinberg to investigate ice at polar stations, which also included ice density and porosity studies.

К ИСТОРИИ АРХЕОЛОГИЧЕСКОГО ИЗУЧЕНИЯ СОВЕТСКОЙ АРКТИКИ

The article presents a brief historiographical review of the first archaeological studies of the Yenisei North. The study presents a description of unknown documents developed by the team of the Arctic Institute in the mid 1940s. The evacuation of the Institute of the Arctic to Krasnoyarsk during the Great Patriotic War increased the attention of its employees to the Krasnoyarsk North. The article publishes «Brief instructions for the registration and protection of archaeological sites of the Soviet Arctic» and «A short questionnaire program for collecting information about the archaeological sites of the Arctic». These documents were identified by the authors in 2022 during the analysis of unprocessed archival materials in the funds of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Museum of Local Lore. The purpose of the study is to introduce the identified archival materials in the historical context of the development the matters of registration and protection the historical and cultural resources in the Russian Arctic. The instruction contains the main types of resources of the native peoples of the North: dwellings and settlements of coastal tribes, settlements of hunters and reindeer herders of the tundra and forest tundra, ancient workshops, fortifications, burial grounds, sacrificial places, rock carvings, remains of fossil fauna, grottoes, caves and sheds in the rocks. Saibs, Arangas and other ancient burial places of pre-Christian times among the Nenets, Yuraks, Nganasans, Yukaghirs, Yakuts are singled out in a special group of resources. They were subject to research only by specialist archaeologists and should were protected. The need to single out resources of the archaeological heritage of the Russian population is emphasized on the example of unique finds in Sims Bay and Thaddeus Island. The section «Recording and protection of archaeological sites of the North» contains regulatory requirements for the identification and registration of the noted types of sites. To characterize them, the Instruction recommends cartographic, field observation, comparative-historical, complex and other methods of study. The transfer of found artifacts and all identified information to the Arctic Institute of the Main Northern Sea Route under the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR or its representatives located in the nearest points is regulated. The content of the identified documents ends with a brief questionnaire for collecting information about the archaeological sites of the Arctic.

HYDROCHEMISTRY OF HIGH-MOUNTAIN PAMIR RIVERS: FORMATION, CHANGES AND INFLUENCE ON THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF IRRIGATION WATER

The purpose of the research is to analyze the prospects for the agriculture development in the Central Asian region and Tajikistan in particular, in terms of identifying the main favorable and constraining factors for the further agriculture development. The Pyanj river is one of the main tributaries of the Transboundary Amu Darya River in the Central Asian region, whose waters are a source of drinking water supply for the population and 80% used for irrigation of agricultural land. The trend of deteriorating water quality of Central Asian River systems recently has been increasing, and monitoring water quality from the formation zone to the downstream of the rivers is a problem in the region. The statistical methods and Pearson correlation to the meteorological conditions monitoring of the river basins were used. In the Laboratory of Environment and Geology of the Department of Geological Sciences of the University of Colorado at Boulder (USA), as well as in the Laboratory of Moisture Chemistry of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (USA) by use of an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) and ion chromatography was conducted the element analyses of waters. The physical and chemical analyses of water samples was conducted using the “TaLab” spectrophotometer following the relevant state standards. The suitability of water for irrigation were determined by the calculation of the coefficients of sodium adsorption (SAR), the percentage of sodium (Na%), the percentage of sodium solubility (SSP), and the percentage of exchangeable sodium (ESP). The contribution of the Gunt River to the enrichment of the main Pyanj River with Fe, Co, Ni, Sr, Ca, Mg, Na, and K elements are established. The assessment of the natural water quality of the Pyanj and Gunt rivers for irrigation was carried out using various index methods, such as SAR, ESP, SSP and %Na.

Mapping the thickness of sea ice in the Arctic as an example of using data from a ship-based television complex for operational hydrometeorological support of maritime activities

Sea ice charts produced by the ice services of the world are among the most widely used sources of information about sea ice conditions in the Arctic. The absolute majority of sea ice charts are based on visual expert analysis of satellite imagery accompanied by auxiliary data including ground information from coastal stations and ships navigating the Northern Sea Route (NSR). Ground measurements of sea ice thickness are necessary for validating the results of satellite imagery interpretation. Shipboard observations are highly valuable because, unlike coastal stations, the ships provide information about sea ice cover straight on the navigational routes, not in the coastal areas of land-fast ice, where the thickness values are not fully representative of the ice in the open sea. However, the current system of shipboard observations used by commercial fleets often does not meet the reliability requirements due to the human factor involved in the process of data collection. In the early 2000s, the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) suggested a new methodology for shipboard ice thickness measurement. A ship-based television complex (STC) was developed in order to exclude the human factor and standardize observations. The inaccuracy value was estimated as 3.8 % of the real thickness. By 2018, STC had been upgraded to a new ship-based television meteorological complex (STMC) allowing continuous automatic measurement of ice thickness and many other related hydrometeorological parameters during the entire voyage. The automatic and autonomous operation of the new equipment allows placing it on board the ship without the need for an ice specialist to be permanently present. It means that STMC can be used by commercial fleets, which constantly increase the number of Arc7 ice class vessels they use. For economic reasons, reinforced ice class vessels, whose number is growing, represent the only available infrastructure suitable for the deployment of distributed network providing operational hydrometeorological monitoring on the NSR. A comparison of STC data with AARI ice charts has revealed that real-time transmission of STC data from ships to the ice service office could increase the accuracy of ice charts and, as a consequence, the quality of the entire system of hydrometeorological informational support of maritime activities in the Arctic.

Подготовка изданий Водного кадастра по Арктической зоне Российской Федерации как составляющая обеспечения техносферной безопасности

Purpose: To assess the state and to identify the problems of preparing materials for the publication of the Water Cadastre for the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. Methods: Analysis of information received by the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute from the Murmansk, Northern, Ob-Irtysh, Central Siberian, Yakutsk and Chukotka hydrometeorological departments. Results: It is shown that the state of preparation of the Water Cadastre publications and the quality of published observations on the territory of the Arctic zone of the RF do not meet set regulatory requirements. This negatively affects the results of engineering calculations for hydrological support of economic activity in the region and, as a result, may reduce the level of technospheric safety in the Arctic. Practical significance: The results obtained made it possible to formulate the requirements for improving work efficiency in the preparation of publications of the Water Cadastre for water objects of the RF Arctic zone.

Пространственно-временна́я изменчивость гидрохимических показателей водной среды Обской и Тазовской губ

The Gulf of Ob and Taz Bay are components of a special geographical object — Ob-Tar estuarine area. They are intensively used by companies, which produce natural gas and oil in the Yamal Region. The aim of the study is to assess the spatial patterns and temporal dynamics of the priority hydrochemical characteristics of the Gulf of Ob and Taz Bay. The data of the Arctic estuarine expeditions (1968—1989) and complex expeditions (2012—2013), organized by the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, are used as the research materials The authors have analyzed hydrochemical characteristics: pH, salinity, dissolved oxygen, silicon and phosphorus compounds. In summer-autumn period 2012—2013 there was a significant seawater intrusion to the south of the Gulf of Ob, caused by a small runoff of rivers the in these dry years. Dissolved oxygen distribution is determined by seasonal variability. In summer-autumn period the average values of more than 7 mg/l were observed. In winter, in the southern part of Gulf of Ob and Taz Bay there was an extreme oxygen deficit, dissolved oxygen values dropped below 1 mg/l. A tendency for a decrease in the content of silicon and phosphorus compounds from south to north was noted. Concentrations of phosphorus-containing compounds in the whole water area were low. The condition of Taz Bay and southern part of the Gulf of Ob is mainly determined by the river runoff and the hydrochemical regime in the area. In the period of high waters the regime has features inherent to rivers, and in the period of low flows — to lakes and reservoirs. Large-scale interference in the ecosystem of Ob-Taz estuarine area recently requires regular hydrological-ecological observations at coastal stations and along the water area sections.

ПОСЛЕДСТВИЯ ВНЕЗАПНОГО ИЗМЕНЕНИЯ КЛИМАТА (ПРЕДЧУВСТВИЕ СЮРПРИЗОВ)

Modern climatology is a relevant and rapidly developing scientific discipline, which contains a large section related to socio-anthropological research. It is about the social consequences of climate change. Until recently, climate change was viewed as slow and progressive. Studies of ice and other natural structures have shown that there were periods in the history of the Earth when the climate changed abruptly and suddenly. And the time of these changes can be measured in years and decades, changes can occur during one person's life. The consequences of sudden climate change are one of the trends in modern climatology. Sudden climate change will cause as dramatic changes in social and anthropological systems as in natural systems. Currently, there are several scientific reports discussing exactly this - sudden - scenario of climate change. One of the authors of the theory of sudden climate change is James White, who for several years headed the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado (USA).

1933 Arctic Expedition on the Icebreaking Steamer A. Sibiryakov: Personal Diary of the Microbiologist B. L. Isachenko

In 1933, a scientific expedition to the northern Kara Sea on the icebreaking steamer A. Sibiryakov was conducted, organized by the All-Union Arctic Institute. Among the expedition participants was the founder of Russian marine and geological microbiology, Academician B. L. Isachenko (also spelled Issatschenko), who kept a personal diary during the expedition. This article analyzes this valuable historical source that contains the descriptions of various events that occurred during the expedition and Isachenko’s opinion on these events as well as his reflections on the optimal forms of organizing Arctic expeditions. The diary also sheds light on the inner world of the scientist who found himself in the extreme working conditions. The results he obtained during the expedition lead to the conclusions about the global human impact and future immense burden on the Arctic ecosystem.

Arctic Science and Technology Information System

ASTIS offers over 83,000 records that provide freely available access to publications, including research and research projects, about Canada's north. This database is a product of the Arctic Institute of North America at the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada which also maintains subsidiary regional, subject, and initiative-based databases. The subsidiary databases are all housed within and accessible through the main ASTIS database. Examples of the smaller databases include: ArcticNet Publications Database, the Nunavik Bibliography, and the Northern Granular Resources Bibliographic Database. ASTIS offers the ability to browse through its access points, including its own thesauri, thus permitting users to select and use a variety of free-text and controlled search terms.

Implementing Participatory Action Research in the Canadian North: A Case Study of the Gwich’in Language and Cultural Project

The Gwich’in Language and Cultural Project began in 1987 as a joint venture among the Teetl’it Gwich’in Band of Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories, the Arctic Institute of North America of the University of Calgary and the Ministry of Education of the Government of the Northwest Territories. From its inception the project utilized participatory action research methodology, augmented by the group dynamic process and a feminist approach to organization and coordination. This paper provides a case study evaluation of the Gwich’in Language and Cultural Project in the context of participatory action research and focuses on the discrete steps taken in the project’s development. The conclusions affirm the existing global participatory action research literature and extend the models originally developed by Tax (1988) and Hall (1988) to include the two new dimensions of group dynamics and a feminist perspective. The authors hope that other communities and action anthropologists will seek to replicate their methodology and that practitioners will also contribute to the evolving case study literature.

СЕТЕВОЕ ЭЛЕКТРОННОЕ ОБУЧЕНИЕ КАК АКТУАЛЬНАЯ ФОРМА ПОДГОТОВКИ СТУДЕНТОВ К БУДУЩЕЙ ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНОЙ ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТИ

The article is devoted to the actual pedagogical problem-the development of online e-learning in the conditions of digitalization of modern society. This problem is considered taking into account the increasing importance of electronic educational resources in improving the efficiency of the organization of the educational process in a remote interactive mode. The role and significance of the factors influencing the development of e-learning are presented: technical and organizational and methodological support of the educational process, the appropriate level of digital competence of the teaching staff, personal motivation of students. The results of recent studies conducted among students of the Pedagogical Institute of the North-Eastern Federal University (hereinafter-the University) and the Arctic Institute of Culture and Art (hereinafter-the Institute) for a complete picture of the state of network learning among students studying at the Institute and university, reflecting the main characteristics of the current state of digitalization of education. Based on the primary data of the study, the current problems are identified: the lack of contact interaction between the participants, which determines an individual, differentiated approach; compliance with personal conditions (motivation of the student); access to electronic sources of information; increase in the number of independent tasks in the absence of constant feedback from students, etc. The article reflects the approaches to determining the place of online e-learning in the system of professional training of future specialists using modern technologies in the organization of the educational process. The analysis of the obtained results shows that in order to implement the tasks of network learning, namely, the practical mastery of digital competence, training should be aimed at developing students ' sustainable interest in network learning.

МНОГОЛЕТНИЕ ИЗМЕНЕНИЯ ЛЕДОВИТОСТИ В РАЙОНЕ АРХИПЕЛАГОВ ШПИЦБЕРГЕН И ЗЕМЛЯ ФРАНЦА-ИОСИФА

A comparative analysis of inter-annual changes in ice coverage and time scales of its variability in the waters surrounding the Svalbard and Franz Josef Land archipelagos has been performed. The analysis was carried out for the selected quasi-homogeneous regions. Open sources of information (satellite observations) collected by the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute were used. Seasonal and inter-annual changes in ice coverage were studied over the period 1979–2019, since the uniform series of the satellite data were available for this period. The change of a relatively stable type of ice regime to a regime with a high level of inter-annual variability, which occurred in 2004–2006, was established. A significant negative trend in the change in ice coverage, characteristic of the waters surrounding both archipelagos, was revealed. Correlation and spectral analyses were used to estimate possible periods of cyclic fluctuations in ice coverage (taking into account the limited duration of the observation series), which amounted about 5–6 years. An efforts were made to establish possible relationships between the ice coverage fluctuations and the main atmospheric and oceanic indices. Essentially, no statistical connection with the main atmospheric indices (Arctic and North Atlantic Oscillations) was found, but the feedback with the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation index had been established. The maximum correlation coefficients for Spitsbergen are observed in the winter season, while in the area of Franz-Joseph Land this takes place in summer, which may be attributed to the final velocity of the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation signal.

КУЛЬТУРА И ИСКУССТВО КНИГИ В ЯКУТИИ

The work reveals the specific features of book art, which integrates the achievements of artistic means and forms, as well as scientific research. The authors focus on the regional Arctic locus of book art. The article traces the origin of Yakut book illustrations from the first attempts of amateur artists on the pages of the periodical press in the 1920s to the activities of various institutions: the scientific research society "Sakha kehskileh" (1925–1930), the cultural and educational societies "Manchaary" and "Sakha omuk" (1920–1930) and The Union of Soviet Artists of Yakutia (since 1940s), that pioneered the accumulation of cultural practices and development of art trends in the region. The characteristics of the first Yakut artists-illustrators are presented: P. P. Romanov, who created illustrations to the image of the heroic Olonkho epos "Byudyuryubet Myuldzu Bege" and G. M. Turalysov, who illustrated the collection of poems and songs by Ilya Chagylgan "The Rise", thus initiating the development of professional graphic art in Yakutia. The creation of the art school in Yakutsk in 1945, the emergence of publishing houses became a new page in the development of the book graphics in the works of the first graduates of the school — E. Shaposhnikov, E. Shestakov, M. Lukin, O. Kovalevsky, V. Petrov and others. Special attention is paid to creativity of E. S. Sivtsev, the founder of Yakut prints. The First (1958) and The Second (1963) All-Union Exhibitions of prints opened to the public the names of Yakut illustrators. Later A. P. Munkhalov exhibited his series of engravings "My North" at the International Exhibition "Intergraphy — 67" in Berlin, and his engraving "Listening to the World" was included in the German school textbooks. The article also reveals the modern stage in the development of book art, from the activities of "Bichik" publishing house to graduate projects of The Arctic Institute of Culture and Arts and The Yakutsk School of Art.

The Contribution of Academician Yu. A. Shimansky to the Development of Arctic Shipbuilding

Academician Yulian Alexandrovich Shimansky (1883–1962), an outstanding Russian scientist and shipbuilder, is known for his works in the field of structural mechanics, ship theory and ship design. His monograph “Conventional indicators of a vessel’s ice performance”, published as a separate volume of “Trudy Arkticheskogo nauchno-issledovatelskogo instituta [Proceedings of the Arctic Institute]” (ANII) in 1938, is well known to the specialists in sea ice technology. This work has played an important role in the development of sea ice technology and in designing icebreakers and ice-going vessels both in Russia / USSR and worldwide. The reviews of Shimansky’s contributions to Arctic shipbuilding are usually limited to the analysis of this work. The new materials from the archival documents and two publications that are practically unknown to the researchers allow to considerably broaden the knowledge about his role in the emergence of the studies on the vessels’ ice performance at one of the turning points in the development of sea ice technology: the creation of the first ever ice model basin. Immediately after the end of the Great Patriotic War in 1945, the ANII in Leningrad set out to implement the plans for the creation of the experimental base for studying the processes of icebreakers and ice-going vessels’ motion in ice, i. e. the ice model basin. Shimansky became actively engaged in this work from the very beginning. The archival documents demonstrate his role in the creation of the first ice model basin and the articles rediscovered by us allow to reconstruct the process of creating the theory of a vessel’s motion in ice by Shimansky that is still employed in all ice model basins across the world.

Monitoring of the physical and mechanical state of sea ice and short-term prediction of extreme ice phenomena

The article presents the results of studies that complement each other. New methods of instrumental studies of the physical and mechanical characteristics of ice and ice cover are considered.There is briefly described the complex system to developed in the AARI (Arctic and Antarctic research Institute) to determine the strength characteristics of ice formations in natural conditions. The results of determining the ice strength in wells (local strength) at the research station of AARI “Ice Base Cape of Baranov” are presented. The coefficient of comparison of local strength and strength of samples under uniaxial compression is obtained. This allows to determine the ice strength without sampling and testing of samples. On a large experimental material, linear and quadratic approximations for local ice strength were obtained. The influence of the indenter penetration rate on the local ice strength is studied.There is considered the application of the contact remote method for monitoring the dynamic state of the ice cover in order to obtain new data for creating a method of predicting the phenomena of compression and destruction of sea ice in real time.To study the large-scale mechanics of ice during dynamic processes in the air — ice — water system, a modular-block system for ice cover monitoring was developed. The layout of the system was tested in Arctic expeditions.The developed complex system for determining the strength characteristics of ice formations in natural conditions and the modular-block system for monitoring the state of the ice cover complement each other, suggest their further development and improvement, provide wide opportunities for ice research.

First Results from VLF Observations during the Transarctica 2019 Polar Expedition

The first results are presented for observations of the VLF emissions (1–15 kHz) conducted at polar latitudes during the expedition Transarctica 2019, which was organized by the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute. The observations were conducted onboard the Akademik Treshnikov vessel with highly sensitive equipment developed at the Polar Geophysical Institute. Bursts of the VLF emission of the auroral hiss type were registered on 13 of the 26 observational days. These bursts were simultaneously observed at Barentsburg Observatory, which is ~600 km to the west and ~160 km to the south. However, these bursts were not registered at lower auroral latitudes at the same meridian at Lovozero Observatory or at a Finnish station, Kannuslehto. One of the most typical cases, the auroral VLF hiss of April 11, 2019, is considered in detail. It is concluded that the region of the exit of the studied auroral hiss from the ionosphere to the Earth’s surface was local and limited in latitude.

Influence of Atlantic inflow on the freshwater content in the upper layer of the Arctic basin

Inter-decadal changes in the water layer of Atlantic origin and freshwater content (FWC) in the upper 100 m layer were traced jointly to assess the influence of inflows from the Atlantic on FWC changes based on oceanographic observations in the Arctic Basin for the 1960s – 2010s. For this assessment, we used oceanographic data collected at the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) and the International Arctic Research Center (IARC). The AARI data for the decades of 1960s – 1990s were obtained mainly at the North Pole drifting ice camps, in high-latitude aerial surveys in the 1970s, as well as in ship-based expeditions in the 1990s. The IARC database contains oceanographic measurements acquired using modern CTD (Conductivity – Temperature – Depth) systems starting from the 2000s. For the reconstruction of decadal fields of the depths of the upper and lower 0 °С isotherms and FWC in the 0–100 m layer in the periods with a relatively small number of observations (1970s – 1990s), we used a climatic regression method based on the conservativeness of the large-scale structure of water masses in the Arctic Basin. Decadal fields with higher data coverage were built using the DIVAnd algorithm. Both methods showed almost identical results when compared. The results demonstrated that the upper boundary of the Atlantic water (AW) layer, identified with the depth of zero isotherm, raised everywhere by several tens of meters in 1990s – 2010s, when compared to its position before the start of warming in the 1970s. The lower boundary of the AW layer, also determined by the depth of zero isotherm, became deeper. Such displacements of the layer boundaries indicate an increase in the volume of water in the Arctic Basin coming not only through the Fram Strait, but also through the Barents Sea. As a result, the balance of water masses was disturbed and its restoration had to occur due to the reduction of the volume of the upper most dynamic freshened layer. Accordingly, the content of fresh water in this layer should decrease. Our results confirmed that FWC in the 0–100 m layer has decreased to 2 m in the Eurasian part of the Arctic Basin to the west of 180° E in the 1990s. In contrast, the FWC to the east of 180° E and closer to the shores of Alaska and the Canadian archipelago has increased. These opposite tendencies have been intensified in the 2000s and the 2010s. A spatial correlation between distributions of the FWC and the positions of the upper AW boundary over different decades confirms a close relationship between both distributions. The influence of fresh water inflow is manifested as an increase in water storage in the Canadian Basin and the Beaufort Gyre in the 1990s – 2010s. The response of water temperature changes from the tropical Atlantic to the Arctic Basin was traced, suggesting not only the influence of SST at low latitudes on changes in FWC, but indicating the distant tropical impact on Arctic processes.

Educational Institutions as a Resource for the Urbanization of Indigenous People

This article explores the role of higher education institutions in the development of indigenous cultures in the Arctic city of Yakutsk. Although indigenous cultures have historically been related to traditional subsistence activities and a rural lifestyle, the growing urbanization of indigenous people brings new challenges and opportunities. The article draws on statistical data, as well as qualitative data from the Institute of Languages and Cultures of the Peoples of the Northeast (ILCPN) at the North-Eastern Federal University (NEFU) and the Arctic State Institute of Culture and Arts (AGIKI): annual reports, focus groups, interviews, and participant observations. The article argues that students and graduates contribute to the creation of a new image of the city as one in which indigenous cultures can find their own niche.

Problems of the Soviet Arctic Development in the Works by Anglo-American Researchers of the 1930s-1950s

The paper objective is to analyze the works by the Anglo-American researchers (T.A. Taracouzio, T. Armstrong, C.J. Webster et al.) published in the 1930s–1950s, and to estimate their contribution to the study of the early stage of the Soviet Arctic development. These works by Western scholars are of interest to the contemporary researchers not only because they show how the ups and downs of the Soviet policy towards the Arctic were perceived and evaluated in other countries. Some conclusions drawn in the works under consideration remain relevant nowadays, such as the idea that it is impossible to address the problems of the Arctic region effectively without meaningful international cooperation. The Anglo-American specialists used a vast amount of documentary sources and research literature (for the most part, published in Russian) and covered a wide range of issues related to this topic. These issues include the history of scientific exploration; the system of governance in the Arctic in the 1920s-1950s; the economic development; the policy towards the indigenous population etc. While admitting the outstanding accomplishments of the Soviet explorers of the Arctic region, the Western authors also pointed out that there was certain continuity between the pre-revolutionary and Soviet policies implemented in the Arctic; stressed the military and strategic significance of the Arctic territories and negative human impact on the Arctic environment. Specialized scientific research centers contributed to the comprehensive study of the topic. Among such centers one should mention the Scott Polar Research Institute (Cambridge) and the Arctic Institute of North America, which prepared and published 16 volumes of «Arctic bibliography». The author concludes that the Anglo-American researchers laid a foundation for the further study of the problems related to the development of the Arctic zone of the USSR and Russian Federation.

Is there anything natural about the polar?

AbstractAre similarities of temperature, snow and ice cover, and (certain) marine mammals sufficient to warrant both polar regions being considered a single object of study or governance? We argue that their treatment as a unit is an invitation to examine the motivations behind the choice to be polar rather than Arctic or Antarctic. For individuals such as James Clerk Ross or Roald Amundsen, logistical requirements and analogous goals facilitated careers spanning both the Arctic and the Antarctic. This trend continued through the 20th century as individual scientists studying phenomena such as glaciers, sea ice, or aurora defined their research as “polar” in nature. Organisations such as the Scott Polar Research Institute and Norwegian Polar Institute could draw on traditions of national exploration in both polar regions, while the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute in St. Petersburg gained its southern mandate with the importance of the International Geophysical Year. By comparison, neither the Arctic Institute in Copenhagen nor the Argentine Antarctic Institute felt any need to become polar. The creation of polar identity is ultimately a matter of geopolitics, of the value states see in instruments and symbols that speak to polar rather than Arctic or Antarctic interests. In cases such as Finland’s icebreaker industry, a technological capability justified Antarctic interest even without any national research tradition. We conclude by asking whether there is anything more natural about the polar regions than there is about the concept of a “tripolar” world in which the high alpine regions form a natural unit along with the Arctic and Antarctic.