Earthquakes in Iceland & more – 14th Nov 2023

Góðan daginn from Keswick Village! This is Rorshok Arctic Update from the 14th of November twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what’s going down North of the Arctic Circle!

There has been considerable seismic activity on the Reykjanes peninsula on Iceland’s south coast. Since the 25th of October, there have been approximately 23,000 earthquakes around the town of Grindavík and the famous Blue Lagoon spa. The Department of Civil Protection has been monitoring the situation, and on Friday, the 10th, declared a state of emergency in the area, citing the imminent risk of a volcanic eruption. By Saturday the 11th, authorities had successfully evacuated the town of Grindavík, home to about 4,000 people, and the Blue Lagoon closed until further notice. If a volcano erupts, authorities will monitor the eruption size and flow of the magma, and the police and the Department of Civil Protection will determine when people can go home.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office is keeping a live feed of detailed updates on its website. Check it out with the link in our show notes.

In the US, President Biden received plaudits for canceling oil drilling in the Arctic earlier this year. However, the Biden administration won’t end Arctic drilling altogether. The Willow oil drilling project on Alaska’s remote North Slope faced a legal challenge from environmentalists because they were concerned about the project's environmental impact. On Thursday the 9th, a federal judge upheld the Biden administration’s approval of the Willow project and dismissed the environmentalists' claims. This decision can be appealed. People against the project said Biden is going back on his pledge to combat climate change. However, the US government says it must balance environmental and economic interests in the region.

Remaining in Alaska, residents will receive welcome relief to their energy bills. On Friday the 10th, the Alaska Beacon reported that the Alaska Energy Authority has won a $200 million US dollar federal grant to transform Alaska’s energy grid into one using cheaper and renewable energy. In twenty nineteen, massive wildfires destroyed much of the energy infrastructure, supplying cheap, renewable energy to Alaskans. Since then, residents have been forced to use expensive fossil fuels as a power source. This massive funding boost will allow the building of a fifty-mile undersea power cable and two new battery banks across Alaska to deliver, store, and distribute energy from hydropower, solar, and wind more efficiently and quickly.

Over to France and the One Planet Polar summit, held in Paris from Wednesday the 8th to Friday the 10th. French President Emmanuel Macron called this conference to address the climate emergency in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. On the final day, Macron announced a plan to invest a billion euros, or $1.1 billion US dollars, in polar research by twenty thirty, which includes building a new ice-capable research vessel. Notably, Russia was not invited to the conference because of its tensions with the EU.

Finland continues to investigate the source of damage to a key pipeline located between itself and Estonia. On Friday the 10th, Finland's National Bureau of Investigation stated that technical examinations confirmed the anchor found next to the damaged pipeline belonged to the Chinese vessel NewNew Polar Bear. Research revealed that the type of paint on the anchor and on the damaged pipeline was the same. The Bureau of Investigation is pursuing the incident as a suspected case of aggravated criminal mischief.

Arctic security is of paramount importance for both Europe and the US. A joint operation between Norway and the US called the Arctic Satellite Broadband Mission, is meant to increase communication capabilities in the Northern polar region for the US Space Force and Space Norway. Northrop Grumman Corporation, a defense technology company, is in charge of building the equipment for the project. On Tuesday the 7th the company said they successfully completed crucial thermal vacuum tests. These tests ensure the equipment can survive traveling into space and move the project closer to completion.

Military security in Greenland has just gotten a boost too. In April this year, Denmark’s government, which is responsible for all military activity in Greenland, announced it would increase Arctic security across Greenland. The Danish Armed Forces have since been building a new Arctic military base in Greenland’s capital Nuuk. From Monday the 13th, a new program for young Greenlanders to receive basic military training has opened for applications. According to Mayor General Søren Andersen, the Chief of the Joint Arctic Command: "The educational program will provide young people in Greenland with broad basic training which can strengthen the collective Greenlandic preparedness."

Still in Greenland, where the future for glaciers in the country is looking bleak. According to a new study published on Tuesday, the 7th, in the journal Nature Communications, ice shelves in northern Greenland have lost over 35% of their volume since nineteen seventy-eight. Since two thousand, three glaciers have completely collapsed. They fell apart due to basal melting, that is, when the deep ocean warms and melts the ice from the bottom up. If the ice shelves observed in this study continue to melt, they will cause a global sea rise of over two meters —about seven feet. The report calls for reducing global heating emissions and better monitoring for places like Greenland to track and respond quickly to any sudden environmental changes.

This wasn’t the only important scientific study about the Arctic that came out this week. A new study also published on Tuesday the 7th from researchers at the University of New South Wales revealed why our attempts to predict climate change in the polar regions have been so inaccurate. The study found that a special type of cloud appears over polar regions when greenhouse gasses are high. These clouds were previously overlooked as they only appear high in the atmosphere at about 20,000 meters or 66,000 feet, but just like the normal clouds we see, they reflect heat back to the Earth and contribute to global warming. With more sunlight reflected back to the ground, there’s extra heating.

The good news is that from now on, climate models should be more accurate and we can better predict how the Arctic will change in the future.

The Indigenous Sami people of Scandinavia celebrated the 50th anniversary of their parliament on Thursday, the 9th. The parliament consists of representatives from each Sami country in Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Although unable to make laws, the Sami people have gained increasing influence in decision-making processes in their respective countries. At the celebration, the parliament announced its twenty twenty-four budget proposal. The budget has increased by 6% to 33 million Norwegian Krone, or about $3 million US dollars. Funding has been allocated specifically for supporting Sami language and cultural recovery to combat past cultural assimilation.

Turning over to Russia where isolated Arctic settlements might run out of food, fuel or medicine over the winter. On Thursday the 9th, The Barents Observer reported that three months ago the Russian federal government signed a new law that took the logistics of providing goods to remote areas into federal rather than state hands. However, on Tuesday, the 7th, a barge carrying fuel broke down amid reports that the ship was in very poor condition. Moreover, before, on Friday the 3rd, a cargo ship with supplies was stuck in sea ice and forced to turn around. Emergency helicopters have been deployed to urgent areas but are only able to carry a fraction of what a boat can. The 1,800 Arctic settlements needing these supplies are left to worry if they will get what they need to survive the long winter.

Finally, people across Europe had a chance to see the incredible northern lights this week when a huge solar storm hit Earth on Sunday, the 5th, and Monday, the 6th. Normally, the Aurora Borealis stays within the Arctic Circle but there were reports of sightings as far south as Turkey and Greece. The Sun is currently reaching the peak of a new activity cycle and twenty twenty-four is expected to be a strong year for Aurora showings. If you didn’t have the chance to see the stunning lights of the aurora, you can check out the best photos of this spectacular event, with the link in the show notes..

And that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us! Before we leave, we wanted to thank everyone who has been listening to us, and welcome all the new subscribers! We are happy the Rorshok Arctic community is growing!

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Bless bless