A strange beeping noise in the Arctic has Canadians puzzled. Is it marine mammals doing something weird? A foreign submarine? Collective hallucination?
A military patrol and acoustic specialists are being dispatched to investigate, the army said Thursday.
Speculation has abounded since Inuit hunters in the village of Igloolik heard the beep several times off the Fury and Hecla Straight late last year.
Located between the Northwest Passage and Hudson Bay, this shallow strait is usually frequented by narwhals, bowhead whales, ringed seals and bearded seals.
But last year they all disappeared, according to Inuit hunters.
"There are no animals left," said Paul Quassa, a local elected official in the Nunavut legislative assembly who believes the beep is responsible for scaring away the wildlife.
Whatever the origin, this noise "comes from the bottom of the sea" and is loud, Quassa said after going to the spot with a group of indigenous hunters who first reported hearing it.
The army dispatched in November a patrol aircraft equipped with a battery of sensors.
After an hour and a half overflight, the crew found no acoustic anomalies nor any ocean surface or subsurface contacts, Major Josee Bilodeau of Joint Task Force North told AFP.
"The crew did observe two pods of whales and six walruses in the area of interest," she added.
The noise has not been heard since the original report and the case was closed.
But in response to local Inuit concerns, the military is dispatching two acoustic specialists to Igloolik who will join a previously scheduled Canadian Rangers patrol between January 25 and February 2.
The Rangers are a 5,000-strong Inuit military sub-reserve force tasked with keeping an eye on the vast and sparsely populated Canadian Arctic.
"This patrol will give the specialists an opportunity to gather first-hand feedback from the local population who made the initial report," Bilodeau said.
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gkam
1.7 / 5 (6) Jan 27, 2017We've been using some strong stuff, and the Nave has gotten a lot of complaints. Maybe they just moved the tests.
TheGhostofOtto1923
3.7 / 5 (3) Jan 28, 2017He saw one crash one time while smoking pot on a hanger roof.
Its true. He told us this himself.
gkam
1 / 5 (5) Jan 28, 2017Some folk think we can cure their psychological problems.
But first, you have to tell us who you really are.
antigoracle
3.7 / 5 (3) Jan 28, 2017That's the lie he told. He was actually scrubbing the toilets.
gkam
1 / 5 (4) Jan 28, 2017But it is common for folk like otto and AuntieGore to confuse military stuff, never having had the guts to serve. I was in the Air Force, working on experimental planes and stuff for NASA and Test Pilot School then helping to build, test, deploy and operate Igloo White, the Electronic Battlefield in the Vietnam War.
It is all in those military websites I sent you folk to long ago.
What did you do?
gkam
1 / 5 (4) Jan 28, 2017I got to do good stuff most of the time.
As for the sound, I still think it is antisubmarine activity.
antigoracle
1 / 5 (2) Jan 28, 2017SEE YOUR GOODS!!
PLEASE GOD NOOOO!!
I see what it has done to stumpy, in everyone of his posts.
Estevan57
3.7 / 5 (3) Jan 28, 2017Just sayin'.
I trust his judgement and defer to his wisdom and common sense.
If you put my name in posts that are not addressed to me in the general forum I shall retaliate by posting on your wife's social media. Nothing from me, just quotes from your comments here.
I've said this before , so you just got a reminder. I don't care what you call me, but do it to my face.
Fair enough?
Skunkworks sub. lol
TheGhostofOtto1923
3.7 / 5 (3) Jan 28, 2017Only common rodents and stolen valor scum do these things. Georges Nave has gotten a lot of complaints.
gkam
1 / 5 (4) Jan 28, 2017Try to outgrow your petty irritations and let's discuss the Arctic noise.
TheGhostofOtto1923
3.7 / 5 (3) Jan 29, 2017Protecting the truth from pigs like yourself is a noble endeavor.
gkam
1 / 5 (4) Jan 29, 2017You cannot pretend to be one of us.
TheGhostofOtto1923
3.7 / 5 (3) Jan 29, 2017https://www.youtu...DACpP8Eo
-Why would I want to be one of youze? Youre all scum.
gkam
1 / 5 (3) Jan 29, 2017"Only common rodents and stolen valor scum do these things"
"Protecting the truth from pigs like yourself is a noble endeavor."
"Why would I want to be one of youze? Youre all scum."
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Thank you for your views on science.
Somehow you have managed to reveal more about yourself than about me.