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In this photo released by Beluga Shipping on Friday, Sept. 11, 2009, a pair of German merchant ships are seen as they traverse the fabled Northeast Passage. Global warming and melting ice made the journey possible. (AP Photo/Beluga Shipping)

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German ships poised to complete Arctic shortcut

Published: September 11th, 2009 08:44 AM
Last Modified: October 7th, 2011 09:53 AM

Link: The New York Times Two German ships are on the verge of completing the first known commercial shipping transit of the entire so-called "Northeast Passage" through the Arctic Ocean north of Russia, says a UAF professor. The ships, carrying construction materials, left South Korea in June and are on their way to the Netherlands, trying to take advantage of the summertime retreat of the ice cap because of global warming. Lawson W. Brigham, a professor of geography at UAF and an expert on Arctic commerce, said ice still poses a threat to the shipping company -- as does Russian red tape. "This may be as much of a test run for the bureaucracy as for the ice," said Brigham. The Associated Press reports the ships this week are in the Siberian port of Yamburg.

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