Arctic Boom Awash in Green Risk

(NEWSER) - Canada and the US are letting their Arctic rivalry thaw long enough to launch an exploration mission, the Globe & Mail reports. A pair of icebreakers—one from each country—will set off next week into uncharted waters, working in tandem to clear a path and map North America's continental shelf. The research is likely to lay a foundation for future claims to the Arctic's riches. More»

Ice melt inflames dispute over control of Northwest Passage

(NEWSER) - In the wake of this summer's record-shattering Arctic melting, Canada is asserting its control over the Northwest Passage, increasing patrols, and planning to build a military base, the BBC reports. Apparently undeterred by competing claims to the legendary waterway, the head of the Canadian Coast Guard says it's "important to assert your control over your country and your territorial waters." More»

Russia claims polar mineral wealth

(NEWSER) - In the latest audacious claim by Russia, the nation is insisting that rock samples taken 13,000 feet beneath the North Pole prove that a large part of the Arctic seabed is rightfully Russian territory. The US, Canada, Norway and Denmark also have territorial claims to the mineral-rich area that's becoming increasingly accessible as the ice cap melts. More»

Denmark to launch expedition to Arctic to defend territorial claims

(NEWSER) - A Danish expedition is set to head for the Arctic tomorrow, joining the scramble to claim polar territories. A team of 40 scientists and massive icebreakers are heading north to prove that a 2,000-kilometer underwater mountain range stretching to the pole is an extension of Greenland, and accordingly belongs to Denmark. But Canada and Russia are also calling dibs on the ridge and its untapped resources. More»

Scramble for melting Arctic starting to heat up

(NEWSER) - As melting ice continues to make more of the Arctic Sea accessible every year, Russia is planning to annex an area of the sea the size of Texas and Arizona combined. The Kremlin is expected to stake its claim to the waters at the United Nations, arguing that the Siberian continental shelf is connected to undersea Arctic ridges, the Christian Science Monitor reports. More»