Scientific Research in the Arctic: Canada

Authors

  • W.E. Van Steenburgh
  • Mary J. Giroux

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic3414

Keywords:

Sarqaq culture

Abstract

A new chapter is being written in the history of Canada's polar regions. The past two decades have seen a marked acceleration in research activity, as opposed to exploration. The resultant knowledge is gradually bringing the Canadian Arctic into focus against the backdrop of the Canadian economy. Basic research is essential for the proper assessment and development of the tremendous resource potential of this vast region of Canada. Already, geophysical and geological research have revealed an oil and gas storehouse of great promise, estimated at one million cubic miles of oil and gas-bearing sedimentary rocks in Canada's northern territories, the bulk of which in the Arctic Islands. It has been calculated that this could amount to much as 13 billion barrels of oil beneath the permafrost of the Northwest Territories, another 3 billion in the Yukon, and 33 billion in the Arctic Islands. Other mineral wealth brought to light includes gold, silver, pitchblende, iron ore, lead, zinc, asbestos, and tungsten. On the purely scientific side of the ledger, there have been a number of interesting discoveries. Two unusual geophysical anomalies have come to light, for instance, and palaeomagnetic investigations on Ellef Ringnes Island have disclosed that, in Mesozoic time, the apparent magnetic pole was in a quite different part of North America. Knowledge of the Canadian Arctic is not easily won. Research in these regions is costly, and the logistic problems involved demand careful planning and efficient use of facilities and equipment. These factors have influenced the character of the research undertaken and, indirectly, the source of funds available for the work. The basic source of such funds has been, and still is, the government - whether the moneys are spent directly by the interested departments of government or are dispersed through independent research institutes, such as The Arctic Institute of North America, or through university-oriented arctic research. Research in the Canadian Arctic falls into three main categories: government, special projects under independent direction, and university research. ...

Downloads

Published

1966-01-01