Has anyone else seen the documentary on NOVA, “Arctic Dinosaurs“? I watched it last night on PBS here in Florida on WUSF. Contrary to what some might believe, the show was not about climate change, global warming or man’s influence. It was about the discovery of 8 different species of dinosaur bones found on the North Slope of Alaska, only a stone’s through from the Arctic Ocean. How can that be?
Well, that’s what the scientists wanted to know and with the cooperation of several scientists and the field of specialties they work in, it took years to reach some kind of theories and/or conclusions.
What I found interesting, among tons of information that baffled the brain and soared over my head, was the fact that for centuries science has believed that dinosaurs were cold-blooded creatures, unable to withstand the cold climate of the Arctic.
Fossils examined from the area revealed that some 70 million years ago plant life in this region was similar to that found in some tropical regions. The conclusion of the scientists stated that the climate on the north slope, of which they deemed was considerably closer to the North Pole 70-million years ago, was similar to that of today’s southern end of Alaska, down near Ketchikan.
Can one conclude that there was climate change and even global warming long before man ever step foot on this planet? Perhaps, but science should never be “settled” with little or no interest in further exploration to discover more truths. After all, who would have believed dinosaurs roamed freely on the North Slope of Alaska.
Tom Remington



