'Most at risk on the planet': Polar heritage sites are slipping into the sea but can one island live forever online?

On Qikiqtaruk, off Canada's Yukon coast, scientists are wielding virtual-reality cameras, 3D models and digital archives to protect the island's history and culture before it disappearsIt was early July when the waters of the Beaufort Sea crept, then rushed, over the gravel spit of a remote Arctic island. For hours, the narrow strip of land, extending like the tail of a comma into the waters, gradually disappeared into the ocean.When Canadian scientists on Qikiqtaruk (also known as Herschel Island), off the coast of Canada's Yukon territory, surveyed the deluge, they saw a grimly comical scene unfold. Continue reading...