This letter describes a field investigation of the thermal infrared (8-14/on) emissivities at normal incidence of a number of land cover types typical of the Arctic during summer. The types studied include water, various forms of ice and snow, fine shale particles from moraines, and sandstone. The results should assist the interpretation of thermal infrared imagery (e.g. from the infrared channels of the ERS-1 along-track scanning radiometer (ATSR) ) of Arctic areas.