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Aug 17 2011 - 3:25pm
Chapter 3: Fragile Fauna
Jelly Critters
Grade Level: 5-6
Focus: Life Science- Gelatinous zooplankton in the Canada Basin
Description: In this activity, students will be able to compare and contrast at least three different groups of organisms that are includ
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Jan 6 2011 - 10:28am
Arctic Ice diver Shawn Harper “stands” on the ice ceiling above him.
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Jan 14 2013 - 11:22am
Polar bears have evolved to survive in the Arctic with large, oar-like front paws for better swimming, as well as insulating blubber, and two layers of fur for the frigid temperatures. They rely on pack ice, traveling thousands of miles in a year looking for food (mostly ringed and bearded seals,...
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Aug 3 2012 - 10:51am
This copepod Calanus hyperboreus (up to 7mm in length) lives in the Arctic, usually within 500 meters of the surface. To survive the cold Arctic winters, Calanus hyperboreus builds up dense fat (lipid) supplies on its body, which makes it a preferred food of both...
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Jan 6 2011 - 4:40pm
The Arctic is one of the most remote and uncharted areas of the world. With all the amazing discoveries hidden in the ice and water, Arctic exploration is truly a new scientific frontier.
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Jul 27 2012 - 9:35am
Found in Arctic waters, this rare deep-water species of larvacean, Oikopleura gorskyi, eats by filtering particles from the seawater it drifts through. Larvaceans build 'houses' around themselves made of protein that helps them filter the water even better. And when the filters in its house...
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Mar 26 2010 - 1:03pm
Drilling near the North Pole, Dr. Jan Backman reveals a brief moment in time when the Arctic was subtropical. More about world climate change can be found in our Climate Change featured story.
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Jul 27 2012 - 11:00am
Narwhals (Monodon monoceros) are a type of toothed whale, best known for their long unicorn-like tusk. The tusk is normally found on male narwhals and is actually a tooth.
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Jan 6 2011 - 2:31pm
Bottom trawl treasures from the shallow Chukchi Seafloor near the Canada Basin: sea stars, brittle stars, clams, some snails and crabs. View the “Under Arctic Ice” photo essay to learn more.
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Jan 5 2011 - 4:43pm
It takes special equipment and many warm layers of clothing to dive safely beneath Arctic sea ice. Ice divers look for holes in a melt pond in order to enter the frigid waters.
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Jan 6 2011 - 3:09pm
Arctic cod have a special protein that keeps their blood from freezing in ice-cold Arctic waters.
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Jan 7 2011 - 12:26pm
See an animation showing over time, the receding of summer sea ice in the Arctic.
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Feb 27 2013 - 10:23am
The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is found in the Arctic and classified as a vulnerable species by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This marine mammal can swim more than 30 miles when sea ice has receded due to warm temperatures.
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Jan 4 2011 - 5:17pm
Hoping to hear bowhead whales, NOAA marine mammal scientist Sue Moore listens to real-time sounds from an underwater hydrophone.
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Jan 6 2011 - 12:38pm
Many jellyfish in the class Hydrozoa, such as this hydromedusa Aglantha digitale, are transparent and easily overlooked. Learn more about hydrozoan jellies and other jellyfish, and see more pictures of Arctic animals in the “Under Arctic Ice” photo essay.
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Jul 15 2011 - 5:00pm
"Cold-Water Diving: Going to Extremes for Research" is a video produced by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) that shows the focus needed to do scientific work in cold water. The gear is bulkier and heavier, cold affects dexterity and capacity, and dives must be shorter yet still get the...
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Jan 26 2012 - 11:45am
Geologist Charles Paull (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) investigates geologic features similar to pingos (Earth covered ice mounds found in the Arctic) on the Arctic Ocean floor where methane—a powerful greenhouse gas—bubbles through sediments and forms hundreds of low hills. Read an...
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Sep 12 2011 - 1:10pm
CREDIT: Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center
Basque Whalers Background
Having already learned to hunt large whales in the Bay of Biscay in the 13th through 15th centuries, Basques began arriving in the rich whaling grounds of southern Labrador, Newfoundland, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence...
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Feb 15 2013 - 10:56am
This pair of sea butterflies (Limacina helicina) flutter not far from the ocean's surface in the Arctic. Sea butterflies are a type of sea snail, but instead of dragging themselves around the seafloor with a muscular foot, they flap their adapted feet like butterfly wings! They are very small—...
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Jan 6 2011 - 10:56am
Ice divers use a quadrat to study the density of creatures living on the underside of Arctic ice floes. A quadrat is a standardized square used to take sample measurements that allow researchers to get an accurate estimate of the number of particular animals living in a larger space.
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Jan 6 2011 - 2:05pm
In many species of copepods, males are rare and short-lived. This male of Scaphocalanus acrocephalus is readily distinguished from the female by features of his antennae and tail. View the “Under Arctic Ice” photo essay to learn more.
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Jan 6 2011 - 2:59pm
A sea star, Hymenaster pellucidus, brought up from a benthic ROV dive. View the “Under Arctic Ice” photo essay to learn more.
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Jun 18 2012 - 9:37am
Chrysaora melanaster, one of the largest jellyfish commonly found in the Arctic, swims underneath the Arctic ice. Its tentacles can stretch to more than 3 meters long and pack a mean sting for humans.
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Jan 14 2011 - 2:57pm
The National Ice Center’s work is focused on ensuring safe and efficient navigation, but it also supports scientific research and provides crucial information used by scientists to better monitor and understand climate change. Researchers working in the Arctic and Antarctic depend on the support of...
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