Polynya

Mid-sea polynyas are formed when specific atmospheric conditions occur over preconditioned oceanographic areas.

Because animals can adapt their life strategies to this regularity, these types of polynyas are of special ecological research significance.

[13] Furthermore, polynya formation is typically associated with upwelling, a process that transports nutrient-rich water from the ocean bottom towards the surface.

[19] It may have served as a stepping stone for the original settlers of Greenland as they traversed through what is now northern Canada 4500 years ago.

[19] There are also indications that the North Water Polynya has aided Thule, Inuit, Norse, and western explorers throughout history.

[19] Today, the North Water Polynya enables the existence of Greenland's northernmost towns, such as Qaanaaq, Qeqertat, Savissivik and Siorapaluk.

[20] When submarines of the U.S. Navy made expeditions to the North Pole in the 1950s and 1960s, there was significant concern about surfacing through the thick pack ice of the Arctic Ocean.