Tundra ecosystems are cold-climate terrestrial systems characterized by low temperatures, short growing seasons, and the presence of permafrost that constrains soil development, hydrology, and rooting depth. They exhibit low primary productivity dominated by cold-adapted vegetation such as mosses, lichens, sedges, and dwarf shrubs, with nutrient cycling strongly limited by slow decomposition rates. These ecosystems are important in Earth system science as major carbon reservoirs in frozen soils and peat deposits, and they show high sensitivity to climate warming, which alters vegetation composition, active-layer depth, greenhouse gas fluxes (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O), and biotic interactions, including herbivory and microbial community dynamics.
The number of wildland fires burning in the Arctic is on the rise, according to NASA researchers. Moreover, these blazes are burning larger, hotter, and longer than they did in previous decades.
Earth Sciences
Jan 14, 2026
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Extreme weather events have become significantly more common in the Arctic over recent decades, posing a threat to vital polar ecosystems, according to new research by an international team of scientists.
Earth Sciences
Jan 8, 2026
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Wildfires on Alaska's North Slope were more active this past century than at any time in the past 3,000 years, according to a study published in the journal Biogeosciences.
Earth Sciences
Dec 18, 2025
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31
Arctic coastlines are falling into the sea. Wave action, rising sea levels, and thawing permafrost are all contributing to the massive erosion that has forced whole towns to move farther from the water's edge.
Earth Sciences
Nov 17, 2025
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Scientists from the Canadian Museum of Nature have announced the discovery and description of an extinct rhinoceros from the Canadian High Arctic. The nearly complete fossil skeleton of the new species was recovered from ...
Evolution
Oct 28, 2025
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250
A new study published in the journal Oikos reveals for the first time the critical role polar bears play as carrion providers for Arctic species. Researchers from University of Manitoba and San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 28, 2025
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40
Increased warming in high-latitude wetlands seems poised to increase the activity of methanogens, or methane-producing microbes. These ecosystems are complex places, however, making outcomes hard to predict.
Earth Sciences
Oct 16, 2025
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56
Researchers at the University of Oulu, Finland, have observed significant vegetation changes in the treeless heath and tundra regions of northern Finland and Norway over recent decades, marked by the expansion of crowberry ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 13, 2025
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13
A new international study involving researchers from the University of Gothenburg shows that vegetation in the Arctic is changing rapidly as species from nearby forests spread into the tundra. This change is occurring in ...
Ecology
Sep 22, 2025
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94
In Alaska's Brooks Range, rivers once clear enough to drink now run orange and hazy with toxic metals. As warming thaws formerly frozen ground, it sets off a chemical chain reaction that is poisoning fish and wreaking havoc ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 9, 2025
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