Geology News

The Arctic’s role in geostrategic competition is growing, in large part because reductions in permanent sea ice have exposed coastal borders and facilitated increased human and economic activity, said the U.S. Coast Guard’s Arctic Strategic Outlook.The warming of the Arctic has led to longer and larger windows of reduced ice conditions. From 2006 to 2018, satellite imagery observed the 12 lowest Arctic ice extents on record.1 This has led to greater access through Arctic shipping routes.While the near-term future of these routes is uncertain, a polar route has the potential to reduce transit times of traditional shipping routes by up to two weeks.Russia’s establishment of a Northern Sea Route Administration…

The extent of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles outside Bouvet Island has now been clarified with the Continental Shelf Commission (CSC) in New York.The Commission’s recommendation is in line with Norway’s proposal submitted to the Commission in 2009 and revised in 2015.According to a press note from Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs led the work on the shelf proposal.NPD, which is the State’s authority charged with geotechnical mapping of the continental shelf, has been responsible for preparing the technical and scientific documentation required by the UN Convention on Law of the Sea.