LEO Network

About the LEO Network
The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
Continue

Observations

Rabid fox caught in trap
Another fox on Svalbard has tested positive for rabies after being caught in a trap, according to Svalbardposten.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway
Svalbardposten

Had to free a reindeer
The Governor of Svalbard helped free a reindeer that had become stuck, reportedly in trash, in Longyearbyen. Authorities suggest such incidents may recur due to litter.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway
Svalbardposten

Dead Arctic fox did not have rabies – but avian influenza
An emaciated Arctic fox found dead at Vindodden in August tested positive for avian influenza, not rabies, according to the Norwegian Veterinary Institute.
Vindodden, Svalbard, Norway
Svalbardposten

New October Record
A temperature of 10.2°C was recorded Tuesday morning at Svalbard Airport, the warmest October reading since measurements began. Mild weather is reported around Longyearbyen.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway

LL warns: Do not drink the tap water
Longyearbyen authorities advise residents not to drink tap water after manganese levels spiked to about 1,000 µg/L. Free drinking water is being distributed via Svalbardbutikken and filtered bulk containers from Svalbard Bryggeri.

Found large amounts of cloudberries
Researchers report unusually abundant cloudberries in Svalbard this year, with monitoring at Colesbukta indicating the berries did well. The exact locations are being kept secret and picking is not allowed due to protections.
Colesbukta, Svalbard, Norway

New fox with confirmed rabies
An Arctic fox found at Alkepynten, Svalbard, has tested positive for rabies, the Norwegian Veterinary Institute reports.
Alkepynten, Svalbard, Norway

We Have Never Found So Many Carcasses
During this year's reindeer count in Adventdalen, researcher Åshild Ønvik Pedersen discovered an unprecedented number of reindeer carcasses, indicating a significant die-off.
Adventdalen, Svalbard, Norway

Sick fox discovered
In early July, a group found a sick polar fox in Sundbukta near Longyearbyen, and the Governor’s office was notified.
Sundbukta, Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway

Bird Flu Detected in Arctic Foxes in Svalbard
Highly pathogenic avian influenza was confirmed in four Arctic fox pups near Barentsburg, Svalbard—the first detection of bird flu in Arctic foxes in Norway. Sick cubs and adult foxes were euthanized to prevent further spread.
Barentsburg, Svalbard, Norway
High North News

Extremely Low Extent of Sea Ice
The article reports extremely low sea ice measurements in the Arctic for January, with notable figures from both the Arctic and Southern Hemisphere.
Svalbard, Arctic, Norway
High North News

The first case of a walrus dying of bird flu registered on Svalbard
“Last year we got several reports from tourists and scientists that they saw around six walruses dead here on the west side of Svalbard. Unfortunately, we couldn’t sample them as the dead walruses drifted away by the time we got to the place. But it’s not normal to get so many reported dead walruses in such a small area," said Christian Lydersen, senior scientist at the Norwegian Polar Institute. Now samples (collected by a Station Manager in July 2023) have tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza.
Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
The Independent Barents Observer

Svalbard had warmest June on record
Longyearbyen airport had an average temperature of 6.1°C, which is 2.5°C above normal. Global air and sea surface temperatures were also at record levels.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
The Independent Barents Observer

Outbreak of avian flu on Hopen
There have been similar, even larger outbreaks of avian flue in seabird colonies in north Norway. In some cases, the losses were dramatic and major fractions of the colonies were wiped out. In Spitsbergen, avian flu was found for the first time in 2002, but the recent outbreak on Hopen is the largest one so far.
Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
Spitzbergen | Svalbard

Summer 2022 was warmest on record for Svalbard
Temperature records are becoming the new normal for summers on Svalbard, the Arctic archipelago halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. Summer 2022 saw the average even higher, with 7.4 degrees C for June, July and August at the airport a few kilometers west of Longyearbyen, the main settlement on the archipelago.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
ArcticToday

Polar bear shot dead after attacking tourist on Svalbard
A French woman is hospitalized and a polar bear is dead after the bear attacked the woman on the Norwegian Arctic archipelago Svalbard Monday morning. The woman, who was wounded in the arm by the attacking polar bear, was one of 25 people staying at a tent camp in Nordfjorden on the northern shores of Isfjorden.
Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Svalbard and Jan Mayen
ArcticToday

Rare footage shows a polar bear hunt a swimming reindeer
Rare footage shot by a researcher expedition in Norway shows a polar bear hunting and catching a swimming adult reindeer. The video, captured by Mateusz Gruszka, a cook for an expedition of Polish researchers in August 2021 on the Svalbard archipelago, shows the bear catching the reindeer and drowning it before dragging it ashore.
Svalbard Archipelago
ArcticToday

Record November warmth in Svalbard
At Longyearbyen airport, the peak temperature reached 9.2 °C for a short period, nearly two degrees warmer than the last November record measured in 1975.
The Independent Barents Observer

Record heat in Svalbard is causing problems – Mine 7 inundated with meltwater
The glacier over Mine 7 in Adventdalen on Svalbard is thawing in the summer heat. This has resulted in a severe flood with thousands of liters of water.
Gruve 7, Advendtdalen, Svalbard
NRK
Anja Ariel Tørnes Brekke, Aslaug Aarsæther

Polar bear kills man in Norway's Arctic Svalbard islands
The man, identified as 38-year-old Dutch citizen was attacked in his tent before dawn and died shortly afterwards of his injuries. Svalbard officials say there were seven people on the site at the time and they are being looked after by health services.
BBC News

Climate change hits back, Svalbard coal mine flooded by melting glacier
After days with record heat at Svalbard, the penetration of water from the above melting glacier is now flooding Norway’s only operating coal mine that supplies the country’s only coal-power plant.

Hottest Ever Day Recorded in Arctic Svalbard
It was hotter today on Svalbard than in the Norwegian capital, Oslo. So much so, that the previous temperature record from 1979 was smashed.
Life in Norway

A Svalbard reindeer died after getting tangled up in plastic waste
Staff from the governor's office responded and found two bulls entangled on the shore. One lay dead in the water, and another could not move. A third bull had managed to get loose.
Arctic Today

She lives where the soil heats up the fastest
People in Longyearbyen have replaced parkas with a shell jacket. They must calculate with rainfall in January and February. Both snowmobiles and dogs must be parked. People are annoyed and disappointed. Others are very concerned.
NRK

Svalbard’s ‘Doomsday’ seed vault marks 10th anniversary with upgrades to protect it from climate change - Arctic Today
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault celebrates its first decade in operation by accepting its millionth sample—and a grant for work to keep those samples safe despite melting permafrost.
Svalbard, Norwegian Archipelago, Arctic Ocean
Arctic Today

Arctic birds, seals and reindeer killed by marine plastics; pollution expected to rise
Researchers say the concentration of plastic waste in the European Arctic is now comparable or even higher than in more urban and populated areas.
Svalbard, Svalbard, Norway
Radio Australia

Don't panic, humanity's doomsday seed vault is probably still safe
A lot of water went into the start of the tunnel and then it froze to ice, so it was like a glacier when you went in,” Statsbygg spokeswoman Hege Njaa Aschim told the Guardian of the water breach.
Washington Post

‘Doomsday’ seed vault meant to survive global disasters breached by climate change
The seed bank designed to preserve the world’s crops and plants in the event of global disaster isn’t prepared to withstand the greatest global disaster facing our planet: global warming. Melting...
The Verge

Support

Observation Template