Arctic

The Arctic (/ˈɑːrtɪk/ or /ˈɑːrktɪk/) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic region consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), northern Finland (Northern Ostrobothnia, Kainuu and Lappi), northern Iceland (Grimsey and Kolbeinsey), northern Norway (Nordland, Troms, Finnmark, Svalbard and Jan Mayen), Russia (Murmansk, Siberia, Nenets Okrug, Novaya Zemlya), northernmost Sweden (Västerbotten, Norrbotten and Lappland) and the United States (Alaska). Land within the Arctic region has seasonally varying snow and ice cover, with predominantly treeless permafrost (permanently frozen underground ice) under the tundra. Arctic seas contain seasonal sea ice in many places.

For other uses, see Arctic (disambiguation).

The Arctic region is a unique area among Earth's ecosystems. The cultures in the region and the Arctic indigenous peoples have adapted to its cold and extreme conditions. Life in the Arctic includes zooplankton and phytoplankton, fish and marine mammals, birds, land animals, plants and human societies. Arctic land is bordered by the subarctic.

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