Are similarities of temperature, snow and ice cover, and (certain) marine mammals sufficient to warrant both polar regions being considered a single object of study or governance? We argue that their treatment as a unit is an invitation to examine the motivations behind the choice to be polar rather than Arctic or Antarctic. For individuals such as James Clerk Ross or Roald Amundsen, logistical requirements and analogous goals facilitated careers spanning both the Arctic and the Antarctic. This trend continued through the 20th century as individual scientists studying phenomena such as glaciers, sea ice, or aurora defined their research as “polar” in nature. Organisations such as the Scott Polar Research Institute and Norwegian Polar Institute could draw on traditions of national exploration in both polar regions, while the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute in St. Petersburg gained its southern mandate with the importance of the International Geophysical Year. By comparison, neither the Arctic Institute in Copenhagen nor the Argentine Antarctic Institute felt any need to become polar. The creation of polar identity is ultimately a matter of geopolitics, of the value states see in instruments and symbols that speak to polar rather than Arctic or Antarctic interests. In cases such as Finland’s icebreaker industry, a technological capability justified Antarctic interest even without any national research tradition. We conclude by asking whether there is anything more natural about the polar regions than there is about the concept of a “tripolar” world in which the high alpine regions form a natural unit along with the Arctic and Antarctic.

中文翻译：

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极地有什么自然的吗？

温度、冰雪覆盖和（某些）海洋哺乳动物的相似性是否足以保证两个极地地区被视为一个单一的研究或治理对象？我们认为，将他们作为一个整体对待是一种邀请，以检查选择极地而不是北极或南极的动机。对于詹姆斯·克拉克·罗斯（James Clerk Ross）或罗尔德·阿蒙森（Roald Amundsen）等人来说，后勤需求和类似目标促进了跨越北极和南极的职业生涯。这种趋势一直持续到 20 世纪，因为研究冰川、海冰或极光等现象的个别科学家将他们的研究定义为自然界的“极地”。斯科特极地研究所和挪威极地研究所等组织可以借鉴两个极地地区的国家探索传统，而圣彼得堡的北极和南极研究所由于国际地球物理年的重要性而获得了南部的使命。相比之下，无论是哥本哈根的北极研究所还是阿根廷南极研究所都觉得有必要成为极地。极地身份的创造最终是一个地缘政治问题，是国家在与极地而不是北极或南极利益说话的工具和符号中看到的价值问题。在芬兰的破冰船工业等案例中，即使没有任何国家研究传统，技术能力也证明了对南极的兴趣是合理的。最后，我们询问极地地区是否有比“三极”世界的概念更自然的东西，在这个世界中，高山地区与北极和南极形成一个自然单元。