Did Climate Change Cause Greenland's Ancient Viking Community to Collapse? Our changing climate usually appears to be a very modern problem, yet new research from Greenland published in Boreas, suggests that the AD 1350 collapse of a centuries old colony established by Viking settlers may have been caused by declining temperatures and a rise in sea-ice. The authors suggest the collapse of the Greenland Norse presents a historical example of a society which failed to adapt to climate change. Science Daily 

Satellite Produces Map of Arctic Ice Thickness: Map shows Arctic ice thickness this past winter. The first map of sea-ice thickness produced by the European Space Agency's CryoSat satellite was revealed today at the Air and Space Show in Paris. CryoSat spent the past seven months looking down at the earth's surface from an altitude of about 700 kilometres to deliver its measurements on the thickness of Arctic ice. To gauge the ice thickness, CryoSat measured the height of the sea ice above the water line. Nunatsiaq News 

NASA Sets Sail on Second Leg of Arctic Ocean Research Voyage. Scientists embark this week from Alaska on the second and final part of a NASA field campaign to study how changing conditions in the Arctic affect the ocean's chemistry and ecosystems. The Sacramento Bee 

Indigenous Knowledge Moves Forward at Arctic Imperative Summit. An international gathering of policy makers, ambassadors and CEOs discussed the future of the melting Arctic at a summit on Monday, and many of them stressed the need for indigenous input before any development occurs. Members of the illustrious lineup often voiced support for traditional knowledge, with some saying it has important scientific value. The Arctic Sounder 

NOAA Swamped with Requests for Arctic Information: 'A HUGE DISCONNECT': Weather forecasting among the services that fall short. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is being inundated with requests for weather and ice forecasts as well as navigation information about the Arctic, but isn't able to provide all of the information that the Coast Guard, industries and Alaska Natives need, NOAA chief Jane Lubchenco said on Monday.  The NOAA chief, the commandant of the Coast Guard and the chief of naval operations spoke at a symposium about challenges ahead for the U.S. as summer Arctic sea ice declines, opening the Arctic to oil and gas extraction, fisheries, tourism and shipping. Anchorage Daily News

Alaska House Rejects Special Session on Coastal Management: POLL: Senate offers some compromise but that's not enough to meet on issue. Speaker Mike Chenault said Monday that he polled the state House and there's not enough support for a special session to keep the coastal zone management program alive for another year. Chenault said he is willing to talk it over with Senate leaders a final time on Tuesday to try to salvage the program before it's due to expire at midnight on June 30. Anchorage Daily News  

Trapped in the Realm of Ideas. Opportunity, opportunity, opportunity was the word uttered over and over again as international leaders, global financiers, national dignitaries, state officials and small-town Alaskans met here to discuss the economic and social future of Alaska's Arctic and near-Arctic north. Everyone attending The Arctic Imperative Summit seemed to agree on the opportunity for oil and gas, the opportunity for rare-earth minerals, the opportunity for new shipping, the opportunity for jobs, the opportunity for almost everything. David Rubenstein, co-founder of a $107 billion global asset management company called the Carlyle Group -- and the husband of Alaska Dispatch publisher Alice Rogoff -- on Monday described the entire Arctic region as "the last (and final) emerging market." Alaska Dispatch 

Should Alaska Create a Fund to Attract Investors to Develop the Arctic? The state is positioning itself to be the banker as well as the builder of Arctic projects in the hope of attracting more private investment to the region. And that could be the catalyst to jumpstart broad development in the Arctic -- beyond just oil and gas operations. Investment experts speaking at the Arctic Imperative Summit portrayed the region as an "emerging market" that will need some sort of established investment fund to lead the way and then entice skittish private investors to follow. The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority -- a state development agency that tries to ignite economic growth through financing sometimes risky projects -- could be that entity, if political leaders decide to put significant amounts of cash in the agency's bank account. Alaska Dispatch 

Iceland's President Warns Alaska on Economic Collapse.  When towering financial institutions fail, an economy that can fall back on fish, energy, clean water and the human need for wild places will survive. That's what Iceland learned in the wake of its dramatic 2008 economic collapse, the country's President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson told leaders in Anchorage on Monday. Alaska should take note, he said. KTUU

Differing Diets Make Polar Bears More Vulnerable to Ice Loss.  Polar bears that rely on fewer prey animals to fill their bellies may be more vulnerable to starvation and stress as climate change ravages the extent of their summer ice hunting platform across the Arctic, according to a profile posted online about a longtime Canadian bear researcher. Over the past 30 years, Dalhousie University biologist Sarah Iverson has been part of an effort that collected fat samples from polar bears throughout the Canadian Arctic, producing a remarkable catalog of what bears eat for dinner and how that diet varies from population to population. Alaska Dispatch 

Inuit Education Strategy Launched. Mobilizing parents, increasing the number of bilingual teachers and programs and expanding early-education programs are three of the 10 recommendations in a strategy aimed at improving Inuit education.  First Canadians, Canadians First: The National Strategy on Inuit Education was unveiled in Ottawa on June 16 by the National Committee on Inuit Education, made up of representatives from the federal, provincial, territorial and regional governments, school boards as well as regional and national Inuit organizations. Northern News Services ONLINE 

On the Cutting Edge of Arctic Research. Aquatic ecosystem health in the Upland Lakes, wind energy feasibility in Sachs Harbour and the development of native seed banks - this is what Jolie Gareis loves about her job. As manager of the Aurora Research Institute in Inuvik, Gareis gets to stay on the cutting edge of Arctic research. Northern News Service ONLINE

Arctic Oil Spill Would Challenge Coast Guard. A major offshore Arctic oil spill could severely challenge the Coast Guard, with no infrastructure available to base rescue and clean-up operations, the Coast Guard commandant said on Monday. Reuters