Arctic — studio3607

Close-up of pink moss campion flowers — Moss campion

Red and green rosette-forming plants growing among pale crustose lichen on rock — Red alpine rosettes and lichen

Bright orange lichen-like patches spreading across a weathered boulder among Arctic stones — Orange lichen on Arctic rock

Cluster of small white saxifrage flowers growing low among Arctic stones — Tufted saxifrage among the stones

Image 1 of 3 · AR004 · Sun shining through layered Arctic clouds with subtle pastel color nearby. Click for the next image.

Jagged glacier front beyond a barren shoreline — Glacier at the Arctic shore

Tall fractured blue glacier front meeting Arctic water — Blue glacier wall

Wide close view of a blue glacier front with horizontal bands and vertical fractures at the waterline — Layered blue glacier wall

Valley glacier descending between dark, flat-topped mountains beneath a layered Arctic sky — Glacier between mountains

Fractured blue glacier face with a dark opening and pieces of ice at the waterline — Glacier at the waterline

Triangular dark opening at the waterline of a glacier, with small ice pieces floating nearby — Ice opening at the glacier

Blue glacier front with a deep central recess, dark debris streaks, and small ice pieces at the waterline — Deep recess in the glacier wall

Wide glacier front below snow-covered Arctic mountains with a small inflatable expedition boat on the water — Glacier and expedition boat

Two glacier branches descending around a rocky mountain with dark debris bands crossing the ice near a fjord — Glacier branches and debris bands

Inflatable expedition boat carrying travelers beside blue ice and a debris-streaked glacier — Expedition boat beside blue ice

Plume of water and ice spray rising as ice breaks from a fractured glacier front into the sea — Glacier calving into the sea

Broad white plume of water and ice spray rising where blue glacier ice breaks into the sea — Calving plume at the glacier front

Expedition traveler in a blue jacket holding a large translucent piece of ice — Holding a piece of glacial ice

Expedition travelers standing on a rocky ridge in front of a densely fractured glacier — Travelers beside fractured ice

World Voyager expedition ship seen from an inflatable boat on calm Arctic water — World Voyager from a RIB

Walruses resting close together on a pebbled Arctic shore, with several tusks visible — Walrus colony on shore

Several walruses resting together in shallow water beside a pebble beach — Walruses at the shoreline

Walrus facing the camera in shallow water, with long tusks and thick whiskers visible — Walrus in shallow coastal water

Walrus lifting its head and chest above calm coastal water — Walrus rising from the water

Close view of a walrus's whiskered muzzle and ivory tusks above the water — Walrus whiskers and tusks

Antlered Svalbard reindeer standing among shallow water, moss, and grasses on the tundra — Svalbard reindeer on wet tundra

Svalbard reindeer with velvet-covered antlers grazing among patches of summer grass — Svalbard reindeer grazing

Image 1 of 2 · AR041 · Polar bear resting on a dark rocky ledge in two views. Click for the next image.

About these photos

Polar bear resting on rocky shore

Two views show a polar bear resting on the same dark, rocky ledge. In the first, it looks toward the camera; in the second, its head rests low against the rock.

A quiet encounter

The bear's pale fur stands out against the bare stone. The two photographs capture a change in its posture during the encounter, without showing how long it had been resting there.

An acute sense of smell

Polar bears rely heavily on scent to find seals. Wildlife references describe them detecting a seal from more than a kilometer away, even when it is beneath about a meter of snow. That ability matters across the wide, shifting ice where they hunt.

Speed in short bursts

A polar bear can run at about 25 mph for a short distance, despite its size. Its thick insulation also makes overheating a concern, so a resting bear should not be mistaken for a slow one.

Life along the coast

Polar bears use Arctic coastal areas as well as sea ice. These photographs show the bear on shore, but they do not establish why it was there or what it did before or after the sighting.

Arctic fox with brown summer fur and a pale bushy tail moving across dark gravel — Arctic fox on rocky ground

Gull-like seabird with dark wingtips flying beneath an overcast Arctic sky — Seabird in Arctic flight

Arctic tern with black cap and red bill holding its wings high over blue water — Arctic tern over the water

Dark black guillemot floating on blue water with broad white wing patches and red feet visible below the surface — Black guillemot on the water

Image 1 of 2 · AR037 · Expedition boats beneath tall columned cliffs crowded with seabirds at Alkefjellet, with many birds flying overhead. Click for the next image.

Broad mottled blue-gray back of a whale breaking through dark water with spray along its sides — Blue whale surfacing

A whale's dark back and tail breaking the surface of Arctic water — Image 1 of 2 · Click for the next image.

Pale cluster of translucent, cup-shaped whelk egg capsules among stones on a beach — Whelk egg cases on the shore

Dark, sand-covered fish head with several prominent curved teeth lying on a pale gravel beach — Toothed fish head on the shore

Expedition lookout scanning the water with binoculars from a rocky Arctic shore — Polar-bear lookout on the Arctic shore

About this photo

Polar-bear lookout on the Arctic shore

An expedition lookout stands on shoreline rocks and scans the water and coast through binoculars. Dark weather gear and a bright lime-green safety panel make the person visible against the muted Arctic landscape.

A lookout during the landing

The lookout scans the open water and nearby shoreline for polar bears while the expedition group is ashore. Staying alert as guests move along the coast and return to their boats gives the team time to respond if wildlife approaches.

Prevention and deterrence

In Svalbard, official guidance calls for suitable means of scaring off polar bears outside settlements and recommends carrying a firearm. Scare devices such as flares are intended to deter a bear; using a firearm against one is a last resort. This photograph does not identify the exact landing site.

What the photograph shows

Binoculars, dark weather gear, a bright lime-green safety panel, and an open view across the water are visible. No polar bear appears in the frame.

Expedition travelers walking down a broad rocky slope toward an Arctic fjord under a bright sky — Hiking toward the Arctic shore

Madonna and Mike smiling with O.A.T. travel leader Sebastian on an Arctic gravel shore — Madonna, Mike, and Sebastian ashore

Corroded tracked vehicle remains on a gravel Arctic shore with other old equipment nearby — Rusted tracked equipment on shore

Concrete entrance to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault with reflective artwork above the door and a visitor standing nearby — Svalbard Global Seed Vault entrance

About this photo

Svalbard Global Seed Vault entrance

The concrete entrance to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault projects from a bare mountainside near Longyearbyen. Reflective art catches the sun above the door, while a visitor stands beside the structure.

A backup for crop diversity

The vault stores duplicate seed samples sent by gene banks around the world. Its purpose is to safeguard crop diversity if collections elsewhere are damaged or lost. The storage halls lie more than 100 meters inside the mountain, beyond the entrance seen here.

Cold rock and the artwork

Permafrost helps keep the seeds cold, while mechanical cooling maintains the storage rooms at minus 18 degrees Celsius. The entrance artwork is Dyveke Sanne's illuminated Perpetual Repercussion; this photo shows its reflective surfaces in daylight.

Presentation map comparing September Arctic sea ice for 2000–09 and 2024, with Northwest and Northeast Passage routes marked in pink — Arctic sea ice and polar routes