Where are the whales? Scientists find clues thousands of miles away

In recent years, endangered North Atlantic right whales have disappeared from the waters where they're normally found. Instead of spending their summers feeding in the Gulf of Maine, scientists began seeing them hundreds of miles north in Canadian waters.

Showing up in unexpected places has been dangerous for the whales. Many were struck by ships or tangled in fishing gear, a serious danger for a species with only 340 animals left.

Why the sudden shift? Scientists have begun linking it to a chain reaction in the ocean, brought on by a changing climate. The trail is leading them 2,000 miles away to the world's second-largest ice sheet, sitting on top of Greenland. As temperatures rise, the world's melting is creating far-reaching impacts.

On today's episode, Lauren Sommer takes Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong on an expedition to Greenland's ice sheet and explains how the ripple effects of climate change may be impacting endangered whales thousands of miles away. This episode is part one of a series from NPR's climate desk on the interconnectedness of ice around the world called Beyond the Poles: The far-reaching dangers of melting ice.

Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.

Reach the show by emailing shortwave@npr.org.

This episode was produced by Liz Metzger, edited by Gabriel Spitzer and fact checked by Brit Hanson. The audio engineer was Robert Rodriguez.