The Antarctic Treaty has been the principal governing force in Antarctica since 1961. The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (Madrid Protocol) requires that all past and present work and waste-disposal sites are cleaned up unless doing so would cause greater environmental damage or the site is considered to be a monument of significant historical importance. Despite this requirement, legacy waste issues remain unresolved in parts of Antarctica. Clean-up operations in Antarctica are complicated by a combination of restricted access, extreme weather, financial limitations and logistical constraints. Further complications arise at sites such as Wilkes Station, where the requirement for clean-up coexists with the desire to preserve potentially valuable heritage items.

Several buildings and artefacts with potential heritage value remain at Wilkes Station. However, Wilkes Station is not officially designated as a historic site or monument under the Antarctic Treaty, nor is it a national or world heritage place under Australian domestic legislation. Consequently the buildings and relics at Wilkes Station are afforded little protection under the existing relevant domestic and international legislative frameworks.

This paper uses Wilkes Station as a case study of the complexities associated with conducting clean-up operations at contaminated sites with informal heritage value in Antarctica. The legislative and environmental considerations surrounding clean-up operations at Wilkes Station are also investigated. Furthermore, we argue the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach to operations which facilitate the clean-up of legacy waste and preservation of the potential heritage values at Wilkes. Finally, we recognise that the complexities discussed in this paper have wider applicability and we investigate the relevance of these issues to other Antarctic contaminated sites with formal or informal heritage value.

In 1898–1899, the first American polar expedition to Zemlya Frantsa-Iosifa [Franz Josef Land], under the leadership of journalist Walter Wellman, added at least forty place names to the islands, of which many survive on modern charts. These include the main discovery of the expedition, the large island named for Scottish-born Alexander Graham Bell, then president of the National Geographic Society, along with numerous smaller islands, capes and waterways. The origins of several of these names are now confirmed using recently discovered notes in the papers of Wellman's brother and business manager, Arthur Wellman. They demonstrate the close relationship between Walter Wellman and the political, financial and scientific elites of turn-of-the-century Chicago, Illinois, Washington, D.C., and the state of Ohio, associations derived from Wellman's profession as a Washington correspondent for Chicago newspapers.

US-China relations represent the most central bilateral relationship in the world, but few studies investigate the two countries’ approaches to the Arctic. This article explores the geopolitical shifts in the Arctic, and compares and contrasts American and Chinese policy in the region. The article examines to what extent the two have common or conflicting interests, and discusses the potential for US-China friction and rivalry. Some alarmist writers suggest that the future Arctic is set for confrontation. This article, however, argues that the current stakes in the circumpolar Arctic region are not sufficiently high to warrant confrontation between the two states. Cooperation predominantly guides their policies and activities. While they play different roles and increasingly seek to demonstrate their influence, there are common interests, such as in the freedom of the seas, in resource extraction and in developing infrastructure in the region.

The present study was conducted to measure the elemental concentration and bacterial deposition in the firn-cores at the Midre Lovénbreen glacier, Svalbard. Firn-cores up to 1m deep were collected and divided into three subsections. These were subjected to elemental analysis using inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICPMS). In all 20 elements were analysed. The crustal enrichment factors calculated for these elements on the basis of Fe values, demonstrate that the elements have derived from both crustal and anthropogenic sources. For certain elements there also exists a possibility of input from sea salt spray. Total bacterial counts in these firn samples ranged from 1.03 × 105 to 3.67 × 105 per ml of meltwater. Culturability of these bacterial cells, in comparison to the total count was very low. At 4°C the maximum culturability was <1.4% of the total count while at 15°C it was still lower (~1%).

The bronze sculpture variously known as These had most to give, Aspiration and Youth, stands in the forecourt of the Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI) in Cambridge, and functions as a memorial to the British Antarctic Expedition polar party of 1911–1912. It is one of the most important works by Kathleen Scott, wife of Robert Falcon Scott, and a prominent and prolific sculptor. Originally intended as a war memorial and dating from 1922–1923, it received critical acclaim and was exhibited widely. Ten years later Kathleen Scott offered the sculpture to the SPRI to accompany its new building. The institute's committee of management wished to reject the gift, however, as its members considered it too successful in conveying ‘death and martyrdom and in general the tragic side of Polar work’, as Frank Debenham stated, rather than scientific research and discovery. After prolonged discussions with the institute's architect, Herbert Baker, who admired Kathleen Scott and this work, it was finally accepted and installed as inconspicuously as possible. This article reconstructs the historical background to the sculpture and the controversy that surrounded it, using primary source material. The relevance of the objections to the sculpture, as well as its positive qualities, are also briefly examined from a modern perspective.

In recent years, a decline in the consumption of local foods (kalaalimernit) can be observed in Greenland. However, its appreciation and symbolisation is increasing and kalaalimernit are a powerful contemporary symbol for being Greenlandic. The present article argues that kalaalimernit, as a specifically Greenlandic taste, are suited to marking and maintaining a cultural boundary in relation to the Danish people living in the country, a boundary constructed through identity politics. As the empirical findings from fieldwork conducted in the Greenlandic capital Nuuk and the small coastal settlement Oqaatsut demonstrate, this construction is subject to social change. Greenlanders advocate two different narrative patterns regarding how kalaalimernit are to be understood that stem from contemporary definitional struggles over what kind of cultural boundary is deemed important to demarcate. The struggle illustrates two different perceptions of Greenland as either an indigenous people and/or a small Nordic nation.

Greenland was used by the US as a platform and as an extended arm within its security and foreign policy during the World War II and the cold war. After this things changed, although Greenland remained important in Danish-US relations under the umbrella of NATO. Nowadays, the geostrategic position of Greenland between North America and Europe is gaining fresh prominence in the race for natural resources in the Arctic. Many issues arise from the prospective opening of the Arctic, all of which may have fateful impacts on future development in the region. Climate change, claims related to the extension of the continental shelf, exploitation and exploration of natural resources, together with the protection of indigenous peoples are all current issues that must be taken into consideration in the context of security and foreign policy formation in Greenland. The future of the Thule Air Base is also relevant. This article reviews developments from the World War II to the present regarding international relations from a Greenlandic perspective. As a self-governing sub-national territory within the realm of Denmark, Greenland does not have the ultimate decision-making power within foreign and security policy. The new Self-Government Act of 2009, however, gives Greenland some room for manoeuvre in this respect.

Polar history has historically been white history, nowhere more so than in South Africa, The recent attempt to imagine a post-apartheid deep south through the public recovery of a black boatman who drowned in the annexation of the Prince Edward Islands in 1948 has ironically left the white history largely intact. Re-reading the annexation not as ceremony and survey, but as labour calls the central claims of this white history into question; that the annexation was a triumph of white seamanship not black stevedoring; that Daniels’ death was a tragic accident not a result of racism; and that black labour was merely the manual appendage to white intellects. It reveals that the landing of 300 tons of cargo by black boatmen. was what enabled the ‘effective occupation’ of the islands. Daniels death was the avoidable result of an institutional racism that discounted the lives of black labour and exposed them at Marion Island to the dangerous work conditions of long hours in open boats in rough sea without adequate safety provisions; and that Daniels was a boatman, not an ‘unskilled labourer’, with a tradition of co-adventuring that valued an individual for their strength, skill and courage, not the colour of their skin and in which the individual was defined by their contribution to the group

Poa annua is the only flowering plant species that has established a breeding population in the maritime Antarctic, through repeated anthropogenic introduction. The first appearance of this species in the Antarctic was observed in 1953. Annual bluegrass inhabits mainly anthropogenic sites, but recently has entered tundra communities. The functioning of P. annua in the Antarctic could not have been possible without adaptations that enable the plants to persist in the specific climatic conditions typical for this zone. Poa annua is highly adaptable to environmental stress and unstable habitats: huge phenotypic and genotypic variability, small size, plastic life cycle (life-history types ranging from annual to perennial forms). The spreading of P. annua in the Antarctic Peninsula region is a classic example of the expansion process following anthropogenic introduction of an invasive species, and illustrates the dangers to Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems that are associated with increasing human traffic.

The insulin responsive glucose transporter, GLUT4 is found predominantly in muscle and adipose cells. Maratou and others (2007) reported that there is GLUT4 in white blood cells (WBC) collected from human subjects in response to insulin activation. This study was designed to validate the presence of GLUT4 in white blood cells of sled dogs and furthermore to investigate whether changes in levels of the GLUT4 protein might be associated with aging. Additionally, we examined the blood insulin concentration of two populations of dogs, young and old, before and after a meal to observe their insulin response. It is documented in skeletal muscle that GLUT4 expression is increased as a result of conditioning, making sled dogs an excellent model in the circumpolar north for studying the effects of exercise, nutrition and diabetes (Felsburg 2002; Kararli 2006). Blood was withdrawn from 11 healthy sled dogs: 6 young (1–5 years) and physically fit, conditioned for racing and 5 old (7–13 years), retired from racing. The insulin response was determined using blood plasma and ELISA. The buffy coat (containing WBC) was collected with a glass pipette after centrifugation and washed and suspended in 1x phosphate buffer. GLUT4 was measured using ELISA kits (USCN Life Sciences). The results validate that GLUT4 is present in white blood cells in sled dogs. Age had no significant effect in the concentration of GLUT4 between the populations of old and young dogs. A significant difference in insulin levels pre and post meal in young (0.13 ± 0.03 ng/mL (pre), 0.22 ± 0.04 ng/mL (post), p < 0.05) and old (0.13 ± 0.02 ng/mL (pre), 0.22 ± 0.03 ng/mL (post), p < 0.05) dogs was observed, displaying the typical postprandial insulin spike. No significant difference was found in insulin concentration comparing old versus young dogs. Our data shows that white blood cells in young (40.4 ± 2.4 ng/mL) and old (35.3 ± 8.8 ng/mL) sled dogs have quantifiable but non-significant different GLUT4 levels (p > 0.05). Detecting GLUT4 via an ELISA in white blood cells, opens up minimally invasive avenues for studying the underlying molecular mechanisms associated with insulin resistance in more complex, dynamic and physiological systems. This project was the first step in developing a protocol for this simple, technique with a potential clinical application for diagnosing insulin resistance.

Arctic missionaries have been studied extensively as agents of change but the role of Inuit women in the adoption of Christianity has been largely overlooked. In this paper we discuss Inuit women who played an important role in the processes of evangelisation and conversion. We focus on the first converts in South Baffin Island as well as the cases of Teresikuluk, a young woman who tried to turn her relatives from shamanism to Christianity, and of Pelagie, the first Inuit nun, in the Kivalliq. The missionaries often presented these women as role models choosing the right path in contrast to other individuals who kept their ‘pagan’ that is shamanic traditions. For these Inuit women, Christianity was attractive as it freed them from many ritual restrictions, providing them with more freedom and power. Many women were among the first converts, but in most areas men took the leading roles as preachers and evangelists. It proved to be hard for women to pursue a religious career and here the constraints of their social roles played an important part.

Sea ice is a unique environment providing a vast habitat for a variety of life, including microscopic organisms. It accounts for roughly 5–6% of the surface area of the oceans. It is a complex porous structure of crystalline water, gas bubbles, and pockets of brine, as well as a connected structure composed of macro- and micro-porosity filled with concentrated aqueous liquids. Using micro-Raman spectroscopy, it is possible to characterise features of ice at a spatial resolution of a few to tens of micrometers, the scale of relevance to trapped microorganisms, by providing information concerning the presence and amount of molecular species present in the trapped liquids. We have applied this technique to determine the spatial distribution of sulphate, phosphate and carbonate anions in sea-ice veins using ice obtained from the vicinity of the Palmer Station, Antarctica. The observed sulphate concentrations were approximately 20–30% higher than nominal surface seawater concentrations, consistent with the concentration of brine in vein and inclusion liquids during the ice formation process. This concentration was lower than that in veins present in laboratory-prepared ice. Carbonate and dibasic phosphate anions were also observed in the sea ice. This speciation is consistent with an alkaline environment in the sea-ice aqueous system. The mean dibasic phosphate concentration found throughout the sample was 648 mM, while, for carbonate, it was 485 mM. However, these anions showed extremely high spatial variability. The high phosphate and carbonate enhancements observed relative to sulphate point to the influence of processes other than brine formation controlling the chemistry of these anions in sea ice.

This study examines how climatic extremes during winter 2010–2011 affected the traditional food system in Iqaluit, Nunavut. This winter was anomalous throughout the Canadian Arctic, and manifested itself locally by warmer temperatures and decreased ice coverage. Drawing upon in-depth interviews with hunters (n = 25), a fixed question survey with public housing residents (n = 100), as well as analysis of remotely sensed sea-ice charts and temperature data from the Iqaluit weather station, this work identifies and characterises the extreme climatic conditions experienced, their subsequent effects on Iqaluit's traditional food system, and coping strategies used for dealing with food-related stresses. The results show increased environmental stress on the traditional food system compared to previous years. Freeze up occurred 59 days later than the average for the 1982–2010 period, while mean annual temperatures were 4.9ºC higher than the climatological mean, which negatively impacted hunters’ harvests and residents’ food supplies. Coping strategies alleviated some stresses, but adaptability was limited for financially insecure households reliant on income support. The study shows that when challenging socioeconomic conditions, such as those associated with public housing, are coupled with significant environmental stress, such as experienced during that winter, the vulnerability of the traditional food system is exacerbated. We suggest that winter 2010–2011 can be used as an analogue for exploring future food system vulnerabilities, with climate models projecting similar conditions in the coming decades.

The celebrated meeting between Captain Bellingshausen of the Imperial Russian Navy and the American sealing skipper Nathaniel Brown Palmer, off the South Shetland Islands in February 1821, has often been described by following just one or other of the two men's divergent and in some respects irreconcilable accounts. The most contentious issue is whether or not Palmer told Bellingshausen about the existence of a body of land to the south of the South Shetlands, known today as the Antarctic Peninsula. This note attempts to reach a balanced assessment of the matter by examining evidence from both sides, including several previously unconsidered items. It concludes that, although the truth will never be known with absolute certainty, the basic American account is more plausible, by the narrowest of narrow margins, than the Russian.

Distributions of gymnosomatous pteropods, Spongiobranchaea australis and Clione antarctica, were determined at six sites along a latitudinal gradient in western Antarctica Peninsula shelf waters using vertically stratified trawls. Hydrographic data were collected at the same sites with conductivity-temperature-depth casts, and correlations of explanatory variables to gymnosome distributions were determined using statistical analyses performed in Matlab, a high level programming software to conduct numerical computation and visualisation. Explanatory variables included sampling site, latitude, longitude and depth, seawater temperature, salinity and density, Southern Ocean Antarctic Surface Water, Winter Water, Upper Circumpolar Deep Water and warm transitional waters, as well as oceanographic remote sensing data for coloured dissolved organic matter, chlorophyll a concentration, normalised fluorescence line height, nighttime sea surface temperature, photosynthetically active radiation, particulate inorganic carbon, particulate organic carbon, daytime sea surface temperature and daily sea ice concentration. Hydrographic data revealed that warmer water masses were prevalent along the western Antarctic Peninsula, and the distributions of both gymnosome species were primarily influenced by water masses, temperature, sampling site and latitude. As a consequence, distributional shifts of gymnosomes are predicted in response to the current warming trends.

The reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) is the mainstay of most of the indigenous cultures and economies of the Eurasian north. Yet much of the literature ignores indigenous perspectives in favour of ecological perspectives based on a resource-oriented model. While acknowledging the role of scientific writing on reindeer, here we explore the meaning of reindeer economies that are also reindeer cultures. We show how reindeer can be endowed with a personhood which parallels that of humans, leading to a working partnership which encompasses both ecological and spiritual dimensions. Even when reindeer herders qualify in veterinary science, this does not wipe out their indigenous understanding of the nature of the reindeer. We relate this to the physical, social and moral demands of life in the taiga.

Sir John Franklin's widow, Jane Franklin, planned a biography of her husband in the years following the disappearance of his expedition. In this project she was directly assisted by her niece and amanuensis Sophia Cracroft. This biography never came to fruition, but it did result in an unpublished manuscript history of the Franklin family, dated 1853, which Cracroft shared with Franklin's early biographers. The manuscript provides an interesting account of the Franklin family, including the detailed circumstances of the failure of the Boston and Spilsby Bank in 1804, which caused great financial and emotional stress. The final section of the manuscript provides an account of John Franklin's early naval career and Arctic expeditions.

Captain Robert Falcon Scott has been attacked in recent decades because his Terra Nova expedition (1910–1913) had to rely on substandard Siberian ponies. Certain commentators have argued that this was Scott's fault, but the available evidence indicates that blame should rest with the buyer Cecil Meares. Additionally, archive evidence indicates that Scott specifically requested Captain Lawrence Oates to travel to Siberia to assist Meares in 1910, and that Oates refused Scott's request.

To understand the interplay of factors that shape changes in management strategies, we tracked the evolution of beluga whale co-management involving the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Fisheries Joint Management Committee (FJMC), and the Tuktoyaktuk Hunter and Trapper Committee from its beginnings in the mid-1980s to the present. The objective was to analyse changes over time in the communication network involved in dealing with the Husky Lakes beluga entrapment issue, using social network analysis (SNA). Along with qualitative information, the use of SNA provided quantitative data to document the development of co-management over time. According to both government and indigenous parties, a fully functional problem-solving partnership developed over the course of two decades. Using the beluga case as the illustration, we traced the development of joint management processes, overcoming some of the initial obstacles and accommodating the needs of the various parties. This case demonstrates the importance of legal arrangements (the indigenous land claims agreement), the role of key individuals and the bridging organisation (FJMC) created by the agreement, and the maturation of co-management over time.

Following an initiative taken by the Russian Ministry of Natural resources and Ecology and by the Federal Agency of Mineral Resources (Rosnedra) in 2003 international cooperation on compiling a new generation of circum-Arctic geological and geophysical maps (in scale 1: 5 000 000) was undertaken by a consortium of national agencies from Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the USA. The polar stereographic maps include onshore and offshore geological coverage to 60° N. The bedrock map and database was first published in 2008, the geophysical maps were completed in 2010, while a tectonic map is currently in press. The new circum-Arctic maps are formally published under the Comission for the Geological Map of the World (CGMW/CCGM). A metallogenic map and database of the main occurrences of onshore and offshore metal deposits is scheduled to be completed in 2016.