Intro to the Arctic

In this course you will first learn about the Arctic as a geographic region, the peoples the Arctic, and the long history of Arctic settlement and exploration. Attention then turns to key features of the Arctic environment – its climate and weather, features of the ocean, sea ice, lands and the Greenland Ice Sheet, and some of the rapid changes being observed.

Learning Objectives: Appreciate the long history of the Arctic and its

peoples. Recognize and recall the physical geography of the Arctic, including

major features of the Arctic Ocean and Arctic lands. Describe the key climate and

environmental elements of the Arctic, including its sea ice cover, patterns of

temperature, precipitation, snow cover, land ice, permafrost and vegetation, the

physical processes giving rise to these features, and how they are changing.