Over the Circle

Rósalind, the unofficial mascot of the University of Iceland, Reykjavík [Photo by Marc Lanteigne] by Mingming Shi Where would the world be without cats? This year, under the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, Icelanders are actually suffering from a cat shortage, in particular of young kittens [in Icelandic]. Cats are a common sight in Iceland, especially in the… Continue reading Interlude: The Kitten Shortage of Iceland →

Venus dayside synthesized false color image by UVI (2018 Mar 18) No.1 [Photo: (C) Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)] by Marc Lanteigne For years, the planet Venus was considered the ultimate cautionary tale about the dangers of the Earth’s global warming, given that the world’s cloud-shrouded atmosphere is composed almost entirely of carbon dioxide,… Continue reading Interlude: Venus Favours the Bold? Russia and the Second Planet →

[Photo by Marc Lanteigne] by Mingming Shi 1) According to RÚV, ten pilot whales were discovered stranded on the Snæfellsnes peninsula, in western Iceland, and almost all had perished on the beach. Attempts to move one of the whales back to sea were also unsuccessful. The reason behind the tragedy was not immediately confirmed by… Continue reading Arctic News Roundup: 14-20 September →

[Photo by Marc Lanteigne] by Mingming Shi 1) As RÚV reported, the Diamond Circle of Iceland has opened. It is a tourism region in Northern Iceland which consists of a number of destinations, such as Goðafoss, Dettifoss and Lake Mývatn. The new tourist area is seen as an answer to more well-known Golden Circle in… Continue reading Arctic News Roundup: 7-13 September →

Globus II Radar Station at Vardø, Norway, near the Russian Border [Photo via Wikimedia Commons] by Marc Lanteigne The question of security in the Arctic has become more pronounced in the region of late. This is thought to be a result of the shredded relationship between the West and Russia, which is showing more frequent… Continue reading Whose Arctic Security Is It Anyway? →