Arctic resources race The Arctic consists of multiple sub-regions: Russian Arctic, Canadian Arctic, Greenland (Kalaallit Nunaat), Northern Alaska (USA), Svalbard(Norway), Iceland, Fennoscandia. In addition to these sub-regions, the Arctic Ocean and its multiple seas—Greenland Sea, Barents Sea, Kara Sea, Laptev Sea, East Siberian Sea, Chuckchi Sea, Beaufort Sea,etc.-- make the arctic a vast region with a variety of natural resources. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that undiscovered oil and gas reserves in the Arctic amount to 22% of the world's total, about 412 billion barrels of oil. A Brookings Institution summary reported: The first offshore oil platform in the Arctic was Prirazlomnaya in
Milky seas effect Milky seas effect Milky seas, also called mareel, is a luminous phenomenon in the ocean in which large areas of seawater (up to ) appear to glow brightly enough at night to be seen by satellites orbiting Earth. Modern science only tentatively attributes this effect to bioluminescent bacteria or dinoflagellates, causing the sea to uniformly display an eerie blue glow at night. However, no modern research proves that bioluminescent bacteria are capable of illuminating the ocean from horizon to horizon and for days at a time, as described in mariners' tales for centuries (notably appearing in chapter 23 of Jules