Six to ten million years ago: Ice-free summers at the North Pole

into the climate history of the Arctic Ocean. Using unique sediment samples from the Lomonosov Ridge, the researchers found that six to ten million years ago the central Arctic was completely ice-free during [...] winter, however, the ocean was covered by sea ice of variable extent, the scientists explain in the current issue of the journal Nature Communications. These new findings from the Arctic region provide new

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Nordic Seas Southern Ocean - Overturning Circulation Ocean-Ice Shelf Interaction Southern Ocean climate interactions (SO-Klim) Ocean Acoustics Group - AWI OZA Projects - AWI OZA Outreach Activities - AWI OZA [...] LTER Observatory HAUSGARTEN FRAM Ocean Observing System Publications Data Geosciences Geophysics Research Focus Formation of the Arctic Basin Ultraslow spreading mid-ocean ridges OBS studies Hydrothermal [...] CHARTER (AC)3 CliC Arctic CORDEX CRiceS MOSAiC PolarRes QUARCCS Award POLEX StratoClim SynopSys REKLIM Publications Physical Oceanography Main Research Topics Circulation in the Arctic Ocean and the Nordic

Site Infos

Potsdam carry out expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic. They are mainly devoted to Arctic research - in particular in the permanently frozen areas of Siberia and the Arctic island group Spitzbergen - and [...] in the system. German Arctic Office Since 2017, the German Arctic Office at AWI Potsdam serves as an information and cooperation platform for German stakeholders invested in Arctic science, politics and [...] Wegener Institute started its work in 1992. The scientific focus is the investigation of polar land-ocean-atmosphere linkages, complementing the marine and coastal research fields at the AWI sites in Bremerhaven

SiDe- EFFECT (2021-2026)

production. In addition, ocean warming is leading to changes in the winter mixed layer in the North Atlantic, which has reduced the amount of silica entering the Arctic Ocean in recent decades. This will [...] the consequences of silica decline for the Arctic marine ecosystem and the mechanisms responsible. To understand how climate change affects the Arctic Ocean, we will combine novel and classical approaches [...] Group Silicic acid Decline Effect on Marine Arctic Ecosystems SideEFFECT (Graphic: Mar Fernández-Méndez) Human-induced climate change is altering the ocean on a previously unimaginable scale. One of the

Shelf Ice and Icebergs

calved from an ice shelf or glacier, it drifted, mainly forced by the wind and the ocean currents, through the ocean – sometimes surrounded by open water, sometimes surrounded by sea ice. The automated [...] polar regions Sea Ice Drift and Deformation Drift and deformation of sea ice Permafrost Charting the Arctic Tundra Polynias Observation of coastal polynias Snow Accumulation Retrieval of snow accumulation

Seismology on drifting sea ice

a seismic station on sea ice Seismic station installed on drifting sea ice In the ice-covered Arctic Ocean we also use seismic land stations deployed on drifting ice floes to record small earthquakes.

Seismology in subpolar oceans

Seismology in (sub)polar oceans Contact Prof. Dr. Vera Schlindwein Seismology in stormy oceans In the stormy „Furious Fifties“ we succeeded for the first time to recover ocean bottom seismometers after [...] when the ice cover is almost 100% (Expedition PS137 of RV Polarstern). The data show that the Arctic Ocean offers good recording conditions for earthquakes due to the unprecedentedly low seismic noise [...] originating at the Southwest Indian Ridge now provide unprecedented insight into the formation of new ocean lithosphere. Lucky OBS recovery in snowy darkness Getting help with OBS recovery Seismology under

Seafloor spreading

speed of several millimetres to centimetres per year (plate tectonics). So-called mid-oceanic ridges run through the oceans. In these zones magma rises from the Earth’s interior to the surface, cools down there [...] magma again. A region in which new seafloor continuously forms is, for instance, Gakkel Ridge in the Arctic. This is a submarine mountain range whose northern foothills extend from the northeast tip of Greenland

Sea-ice extent in the Arctic at a historical low

seriously impacted the sea-ice cover: in the Russian Arctic (the sector from 30 to 180° East), roughly 1 million square kilometres less of the ocean is covered with ice than in the past seven years.
[...] Sea Ice
The Arctic sea-ice extent is the lowest it’s ever been in July since the beginning of satellite observation. The sea-ice retreat is especially pronounced off the Siberian coast, as a result

Sea ice motion and deformation

Sea ice motion and deformation Sea ice can be found in the Arctic and Antarctic, but also for example in the Gulf of Bothnia and Finland, is very dynamic. The drift velocities of individual ice floes or [...] other deformation features have a major impact on the interaction between the atmosphere, sea ice and ocean. They also pose dangers for ship traffic. Among other things, our work focuses on the improvement [...] landscape in the Lena delta (© NASA / Landsat , 2000) (Photo: Alfred Wegener Institut) Charting the Arctic Tundra Polynias Terra Nova Bay Polynia (© NSIDC / Modis, 2013) (Photo: Alfred Wegener Institut)