The Kremlin on Wednesday refused to reveal the full story of a fire that killed 14 officers on what was reportedly a nuclear-powered mini-submarine, saying the details of the tragedy were a “state secret.”
Using a new net, marine biologists from Germany's Alfred Wegener Institute have, for the first time, been able to catch polar cod directly beneath the Arctic sea ice with a trawl, allowing them to determine their large-scale distribution and origin. This information is of fundamental importance, as polar cod are a major source of food for seals, whales and seabirds in the Arctic.
Blue whales are returning to the Barents Sea in the area of Svalbard, according to employees of Holland's Institute of Sea Research. The 17 species spotted means the mammals are returning to the region after a century of absence.