The North Pole
Alaska (USA)
Siberia
The area around the North Pole is called the Arctic – it is one
of the coldest places on Earth. Many parts are covered in ice or
snow the whole year round. On a globe, or map of the world,
the North Pole is right at the top.
Canada
Arctic Ocean
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The North Pole
At the true North Pole, there is
no land, only the Arctic Ocean.
This ocean is covered in a 3
metre thick layer of ice for much
of the year. There is also land
from northern countries that
circles around the edge of this
ocean, and some of this land
forms part of what we call the
'Arctic Circle'- an imaginary
circle at the top of the Earth that
defines the Arctic polar region.
This Arctic Circle is what we are
going to be investigating!
North Pole
Greenland
Sea Ice:
Arctic Circle
Finland
Sweden
The Arctic Circle contains some of Alaska, a state in the United
States of America, the northern tip of Canada, most of Greenland
and the northernmost parts of Norway, Sweden and Finland. It
also contains some of Russia, including a long strip of Siberia.
Sunlight on The Earth
Land in the Arctic
Around the middle of the Earth,
the Equator, the sun's rays fall
closer together, making the
countries here hot. As the Sun
falls to the further parts of the
Earth, the Sun's rays spread over
a wider area, weakening the
Sun's rays at each area, making
them colder. At the Poles, the
lands receive the least amount
of sunlight, which is what makes
them some of the coldest areas
on Earth.
The ice-free land in the Arctic is called 'tundra', which means
'treeless plain' in Russian. The landscape here is low and flat
and trees cannot grow because they are unable to stand
up to the intense cold and freezing winter winds. However,
mosses, grasses, lichens and low bushes can survive.
10 | FUSE
The Arctic Ocean and Ice
When the Winter begins, temperatures drop and more ice
begins to form in the Arctic Ocean. At first only a thin layer
forms over the surface. This layer is cracked and broken into
slabs called 'pancake ice'. This thickens and becomes what is
known as 'pack ice'.
FUSE | 11