How many tundras are there

There are two types of tundra, the arctic and the alpine tundra. The arctic tundra is the land around the North Pole. The alpine tundra is found above the tree line of tall, cold mountains. Tundra covers one fifth of the Earth's surface.

Tundra comes from the Finnish word tunturia and means barren or treeless land. The growing season in the tundra is very short, usually only 6 to 10 weeks. In the summer, the top layer of soil may thaw out. When the ice melts, it can't drain into the soil because of the permafrost, so water collects in bogs and ponds. This makes up for the low rain and snowfall! As the top layer of soil thaws out, plants and microorganisms have a chance to grow. The sun is then out for most of the the day and night, so the plants have extra sunlight and can grow faster.

No people live there permanently, but scientists have set up research stations to study things like how organisms survive in extreme climates. Melanie Sturm. Anatomy of the Tundra. Try our Virtual Biomes. Biome Map Worksheet. Biome Matching Game Worksheet. By volunteering, or simply sending us feedback on the site. Scientists, teachers, writers, illustrators, and translators are all important to the program. If you are interested in helping with the website we have a Volunteers page to get the process started.

Digging Deeper. Digging Deeper: Depression and the Past. Digging Deeper: Germs and Disease. Digging Deeper: Milk and Immunity. How Do We See? How Do We Sense Smell? How Do We Sense Taste? How Do We Sense Touch? What is Evolutionary Medicine? Tundra is found in the regions just below the ice caps of the Arctic, extending across North America, to Europe, and Siberia in Asia.

Much of Alaska and about half of Canada are in the tundra biome. Tundra is also found at the tops of very high mountains elsewhere in the world. Temperatures are frequently extremely cold, but can get warm in the summers. The temperatures are so cold that there is a layer of permanently frozen ground below the surface, called permafrost.

This permafrost is a defining characteristic of the tundra biome. In the tundra summers, the top layer of soil thaws only a few inches down, providing a growing surface for the roots of vegetation.