Why is the Arctic Asymmetric? | Why Trees Grow at the Same Latitude as Ice Sheets

In this video we explore the geography of the Arctic. Why do trees grow at the same latitude as ice sheets? Why is the Hudson Bay the southernmost place to find polar bears? Why is Greenland covered in ice, but not Alaska or northern Siberia? Despite hundreds of faulty maps illustrating two symmetric “ice caps“ at the poles, reality is far more complicated and interesting. To understand the ecology and climate of the north, we need to consider one underestimated aspect of climate. Sources: Impacts of Hudson Bay on the Terrestrial Climate of the Hudson Bay Lowlands. Wayne R. Rouse. Arctic and Alpine Research, Vol. 23, No. 1 (Feb., 1991), pp. 24-30 (7 pages). Published By: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. Hudson Bay Climate Change and Winter Wind Circulation. Farahnaz Fazel-Rastgar, York University, Toronto. American Journal of Climate Change. Factors affecting spruce establishment and recruitment near western treeline, Alaska. Miller, A.E.; Sheriff, R.; Wilson, T.L. American Geophysical Union. Patterns and dynamics of treeline advance on the Seward Peninsula, Alaska. Andrea H. Lloyd, T. Scott Rupp, Christopher L. Fastie, and Anthony M. Starfield. Journal of Geophysical Research. Characteristics of Treeline Plant Communities in Alaska. Leslie A. Vierick. Holarctic Ecology. Cryptic or Mystic? Glacial Tree Refugia in Northern Europe. P.C. Tzedakis, B.C. Emerson, G.M. Hewitt. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Volume 28, Issue 12, December 2013. Is the Oceanic Heat Transport in the North Atlantic Irrelevant to the Climate in Europe? by P. B. Rhines, University of Washington, Seattle USA S. Häkkinen, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt USA Paludification and Forest Retreat in Northern Oceanic Environments #sec0060 NOAA USGS