 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Summer expedition confirms Russia's Arctic claims: ministry
Moscow (AFP) Sept 20, 2007 Evidence obtained by an Arctic research expedition this summer supports Moscow's view that a ridge of sub-sea territory that stretches to the North Pole is an extension of Russia, a government ministry said on Thursday. In a statement the natural resources ministry said that preliminary data obtained during the "Arctic 2007" expedition confirmed that a ridge known as the Lomonosov ridge "is part of the adjoining Russian continental shelf." The ridge is being eyed not only by Russia but also by Canada and Greenland, amid increased international competition for economic rights in the Arctic. Moscow's claims got a symbolic boost in August when a team of Russian explorers planted a Russian flag on the seabed under the North Pole. Rivals were unimpressed and said it would not help Russia's case. The rivalry has been spurred by the prospect of reduced ice due to global warming and by hopes of extracting mineral reserves from under the seabed. The ministry said that work on the recently collected data would be finalised in December and that an additional package of documents was being assembled for presentation to the United Nations to support Russia's claims. Related Links Beyond the Ice Age
Satellites Witness Lowest Arctic Ice Coverage In History
Paris, France (EAA) Sep 18, 2007The area covered by sea ice in the Arctic has shrunk to its lowest level this week since satellite measurements began nearly 30 years ago, opening up the Northwest Passage - a long-sought short cut between Europe and Asia that has been historically impassable. In the mosaic image, created from nearly 200 images acquired in early September 2007 by the Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) instrument aboard ESA's Envisat satellite, the dark gray colour represents the ice-free areas while green represents areas with sea ice. |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright Space.TV Corporation. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space.TV Corp on any Web page published or hosted by Space.TV Corp. Privacy Statement |
