MSGID: 1:317/3 627e9cd4   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   May 13, 2022 - Thawing around Akimiski Island   
      
      Thawing around Akimiski Island   
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      On May 11, 2022, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer   
      (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of   
      ice breakup near Akimiski Island, St. James Bay in Nunavut, Canada. The   
      crescent-shaped island is the largest in James Bay, with an area of   
      about 1,159 square miles (3,000 square km). Although currently   
      uninhabited, it has an important history as part of the Attawapiskat   
      First Nation’s traditional territory and is also recognized as an IBA   
      (Important Bird and Biodiversity Area) by BirdLife International.   
      Hundreds of thousands of birds flock to the island during migration,   
      and at least 10,000 of the Southern James Bay Canada Goose population   
      breeds on the island as well as other species. In addition, the   
      southern region of Akimiski Island is a maternity denning area and the   
      coasts are a summer retreat for polar bears.   
      
      The importance of the island to the to the First Nation’s peoples   
      cannot be underestimated. The division of the island from the province   
      of Ontario, where the tribes reside, as well part of the island being   
      owned by the federal government and identified as the Akimiski Island   
      Migratory Bird Sanctuary has made it difficult for the leaders to   
      assert territorial rights to hunting and trapping on the land. However,   
      the western third of the island is unregulated and is used by the First   
      Nation’s peoples as has been tradition. One tradition is that each May,   
      as the air temperature warms but while the ice remains strong, hunters   
      from the tribe cross the ice from the Ontario mainland to reach   
      Akimiski, looking to find food. Because the ice can thaw quickly and   
      unexpectedly, this important foray is fraught with danger. One misstep   
      on the weakening ice can bring disaster.   
      
      To better understand how quickly ice can melt around Akimiski, the NASA   
      Worldview app offers a comparison of two Terra MODIS images acquired on   
      two different dates. To view this comparison, which shows an image   
      acquired on April 29 and the image above, acquired less than two weeks   
      later on May 11, simply click  here.   
      
      NASA's Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS)   
      Worldview application provides the capability to interactively browse   
      over 700 global, full-resolution satellite imagery layers and then   
      download the underlying data. Many of the available imagery layers are   
      updated within three hours of observation, essentially showing the   
      entire Earth as it looks "right now".   
      
      Image Facts   
      Satellite:  Terra   
      Date Acquired: 5/11/2022   
      Resolutions:  1km (165.2 KB),  500m (453.2 KB),  250m (314.5   
      KB)   
      Bands Used: 1,4,3   
      Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC   
      
      
      
   https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2022-05-13   
       
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