Tales of Atlantis

The president’s visit to the Arctic will not prevent villages sliding into the sea

Sep 3rd 2015|ANCHORAGE

IN HAIDA legend, Ground Hog despairs when Beaver abandons him on an island off Alaska’s coast. Confused and hungry, he sings for freezing weather—an ingenious plan, as an ice-covered sea will let him escape. At last, the ice forms and Ground Hog decides he will have no more to do with Beaver. No amount of singing will freeze waters now. The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world; summer sea-ice cover there has declined more than 40% over the past 36 years. Since America bought Alaska from Russia in the 19th century, the average sea level has risen by more than eight inches. The sea is expected to rise another foot by 2050.

This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “Tales of Atlantis”