Tracing Carbon Through the Arctic Food Web

Despite average winter temperatures of -30°F and being covered by sea ice for much of the year, the Arctic is home to a huge variety of living things (humans included) that have adapted to these harsh conditions. However, environmental conditions are changing. The Arctic is warming at a rate twice as fast as the global average and as a result, sea ice is melting rapidly. Scientists are racing to learn more about the changing Arctic climate system with some ecologists investigating the question, "How might the decline in sea ice affect Arctic organisms large and small?" Photo credit: Lianna Nixon