Recently, journalist Adam Popescu of tech blog Gizmodo joined explore.org and Polar Bears International for a trip out on the Arctic Tundra of Churchill, Manitoba, the focal point of polar bear migration. PBI and explore.org have partnered for years to stream live footage of polar bears as they gather off the coast of the Hudson Bay to await the forming of sea ice. It is then that seal hunting season begins for polar bears who have been otherwise living off fat reserves for many months. Gizmodo’s Popescu signed on for an arctic experience to raise awareness and promote conservation of the polar bear population.
Aboard Tundra Buggy One, Popescu witnessed an in-person live chat with polar bear scientists from PBI. He wondered at the incredible set up of signals and servers that explore and PBI have put in place to carry the live images from the remotest tundra across the globe. It’s tough for many to travel to the end of the earth and see the magnificent polar bears – viewing from the comforts of one’s home computer might be a close match. There’s certainly less of chance you’ll be eaten by a hungry polar bear, as attested by Popescu: “standing just a few feet away, I looked into the eye of a wild polar bear, scrawny and gaunt from going a summer without food. It felt like visiting Jurassic Park.” There is evidence that global warming is increasing the length of seasons without ice, shortening the time polar bears can eat. The author writes on the present state of conservation at local and global levels, and we agree that the message about climate change, and the story of the polar bears need to be heard. Check out the article at Gizmodo.
