By Susan Milius
To Brendan Kelly, who has spent 25 springs there, the ice covering the Arctic Ocean looks like a lunar landscape. But it isn’t really that lifeless. Detecting life in the snow and ice, he says, just requires the right sensory technology. And a leash.
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Kelly’s detection systems have four legs and an exuberant urge to lollop off exploring the snow. They are trained Labrador retrievers, who can pick up the scent of ringed seals from 4 kilometers away.