By the end of this century, the average world temperature is expected to increase between one and four degrees,with widespread effects on rainfall,sea levels and animal habitats. But in the Arctic,where the effects of climate change are most intense, the rise in temperature could betwice as much.

Understanding how Arctic warming will affect the people,animals,plant and marine life and economic activity in Canada’s North are important to the country’s future, says Kent Moore,an atmospheric physicist at University of Toronto Mississauga whois participating ina long-term,international study of the marine ecosystem along the Beaufort Sea. from Alaska to the Mackenzie delta.

The studywill add to our knowledge of everything from the extent of seaice inthe region to howfish stocks will change to which areas could become targetsforoiland gas explorationto the impact on the indigenous people who call this part of the countryhome.

Moore,who has worked in the Arctic for more than 20 years,sayshisresearch has already found that thinning sea ice and changes in wind patterns are causing an importantchange in the marine food chain;phytoplankton（浮游植物）is blooming two tothree weeks earlier. Many animals time their annual migration to the Arctic for when food is plentiful,and have not adapted to the earlier bloom.”‘Animals’behavior can evolve over a long time, but these climate changes are happening in the space of adecade,rather than hundreds of years,” says Moore,”Animals can’t change their behavior that quickly. “

A warmer Arctic is expected to have importanteffects on human activity in the region,as the Northwest Passage becomes navigableduring the summer,and resource extraction becomes more feasible. Information gained from the study will help government,industry and communities make decisions about resource management,economic development and environmental protection.

Moore says the study—whichinvolves Canadian,American and European researchers and governmentagencies willalso use a novel technology to gather atmospheric data: remotely piloted drones. “The drones have the capability of a large research aircraft,and they’re easierto deploy,”he says,showing the researchers to gather information on a moreregular basisthan they would be able to with piloted aircraft.

When he ways,”Animals can’t change theirbehavior that quickly,” what doesMoore mean bythat quickly ?