Angela Duncan

 Located above the Arctic Circle  Stretches from northern Scandinavia, across Russia, Siberia, Northern Alaska, and finally to Canada.  Hugs the northern most ring of the planet

 Generally cold and very dry  Short summers  6 to 10 weeks long  Never gets warmer than 50°F  Cold winds continuously blow across the landscape  Average temperature is around -30°F

 Topsoil composed mostly of humus due to slow decomposition rates  Layer of permafrost underneath  Constant freezing and thawing of the soil brings rocks to the surface  Polygonal pattern of stones on the surface

 Vegetation: Lichens, Mosses, Grasses, Herbaceous Plants, Small Shrubs  Land Animals: Grizzly Bears, Gray Wolves, Caribou, Oxen, Weasels, Lemmings, Arctic and Red Foxes, Moose  Sea Animals: Walruses, Orcas, Beluga Whales, Sea Lions  Birds: Snowy Owls, Golden Eagles, Bald Eagles, Arctic Geese, Puffins, Arctic Loons

 Used to be the only biomes untainted by humankind  Drilling for Oil  Pesticides from nearby civilization  Chernobyl Disaster  1986 Ukraine  Great explosion of the power plant  Massive amounts of radiation released (cesium- 137)  Covered the Norwegian tundra in the form of rainfall  Damage to the food chain