An expedition comprising five scientists from the Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) will set off to the North Pole on Sept. 7.

The expedition will concentrate on the area in the Arctic of the North America, said Wang Guo, head of the CAS expedition, on Monday.

Abundant information can be collected in this area which is quite sensitive to environmental changes in the Arctic, he added.

Some 21,000 years ago, an active ice cap formed there and vanished about 9,000 years ago.

Another expedition, made up of 115 scientists and logistics staff from seven countries, including China, the United States and Finland, sailed to the North Pole for a 74-day trip on July 15, sponsored by the National Bureau of Oceanography (NBO).

Arctic research is of great significance as the environmental changes there greatly influence the climate in the Northern Hemisphere, including China, Wang said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 2, 2003)