Archive of News and Press Releases
After more than 100 years: The Endurance has been found!
At the beginning of February, an international expedition team set off for Antarctica to find Sir Ernest Shackleton's ship - the Endurance - which sank in the Weddell Sea in 1915. Three weeks after the start, the team was able to locate the previously lost wreck. Researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute were also on board.
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Interdisciplinary Colloquium in Paris
As part of the conference "L'Europe et la Recherche", the Cité des Science et de l'Industrie in Paris is organising the interdisciplinary colloquium "Régions Polaires: Quels enjeux pour l'Europe?" ("Polar Regions: What are the Challenges for Europe?") from 11 to 12 March. There, AWI Director Antje Boetius will also give a lecture under the titel "International Polar Research in Times of Climate Change" on 11 March at 3.00pm. The event will be broadcasted via livestream in French and English.
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The Complex Life of Ice Sheets
AWI glaciologist Angelika Humbert works on icesheet modelling. Her studies have shown that the ice masses in Greenland and Antarctica are actually changing even faster and more dramatically than previous models have suggested. In her TEDx Talk, she explains the causes and consequences of these changes and provides exciting insights into her work.
To the TEDx Talk
Iron and manganese jointly influence phytoplankton growth in the Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean stores 40 percent of the carbon dioxide that we humans produce - more than any other ocean on Earth. Phytoplankton is one of the main reasons for that: The microorganisms take up CO2 during photosynthesis. But although the Southern Ocean is rich in nutrients that support their growth, there is little phytoplankton there. One reason for this is a lack of iron in the water. However, a recent study by the Alfred Wegener Institute, the University of Bremen and Bremerhaven in the journal Nature Communications Biology, now shows that…
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A Healthy and Resilient Ocean
As part of the UN Decade of Ocean Science, the fourth Ocean Decade Laboratory will take place from 9 to 11 March under the title "A Healthy and Resilient Ocean". Scientists, NGO and industry representatives and even artists will share their work and ideas for the future of the ocean. AWI Deputy Director Karen Wiltshire is co-hosting the online event. Together with Angelika Dummermuth, scientific coordinator of the marine stations at AWI, she is also a speaker during various sessions of the programme.
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“klimafit” – Learning About Climate Change at Our Doorstep
Rising temperatures, extreme weather events like heavy rain and storms – climate change is becoming more and more visible, and Germany is no exception. In this regard, every region faces its own unique challenges. With the course “klimafit”, the goal of the Helmholtz Climate Initiative REKLIM, the WWF Germany and the Universität Hamburg is to prepare citizens for the effects of climate change at their doorstep. As part of the National Climate Initiative, the course will receive 2.2 million euros of funding over three years. In March 2022, the next round…
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Taking action now can secure our future
Today, the 6th Assessment Report (AR6) of Working Group II of IPCC was published, addressing climate-change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. The report stresses the interdependence of climate, nature and people. Consequently, it integrates knowledge from the natural, environmental, social and economic sciences more strongly than previous IPCC reports. One of the two coordinators of the AR6 report is Prof. Hans-Otto Pörtner from the Alfred Wegener Institute, and the two AWI biologists Prof. Dieter Piepenburg and Prof. Björn Rost were involved as…
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Scientific Symposium in Monaco
As part of the UN Decade for Ocean Science, the "Polar Symposium: from Arctic to Antarctic" will take place in Monaco from 24-25 February. Leading scientists from all over the world will take part in the event to discuss the rapid changes in the polar regions and their implications for the global climate. AWI Director Antje Boetius will give a keynote speech on 24 February at 9.30 am and participate in the panel "Understanding polar changes" at 11.30 am.
Further information and livestream
![[Translate to English:] Eisberg in der Pine Island Bucht](/fileadmin/_processed_/2/b/csm_20170219_Polarstern_Amundsenmeer_PS104_079_TRonge_91b4b3592b.jpg "Iceberg in Pine Island Bay")
The formation of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet was very different than previously believed
Roughly 35 million years ago, Earth cooled rapidly. At roughly the same time, the Drake Passage formed between South America and the Antarctic, paving the way for the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Thanks to these two factors, Antarctica was soon completely covered in ice. As a study from the Alfred Wegener Institute now shows, this massive glaciation was delayed in at least one region. This new piece of the puzzle concerning the early history of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet could help to predict its unstable future. The study was just released in the…
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![[Translate to English:] Fisching](/fileadmin/_processed_/3/7/csm_20191125-MOSAiC1_EstherHorvath_9799990b32.jpg "EFICA Project")
Fish and squid found in the Central Arctic Ocean
Single individuals of Atlantic cod and squid occur much further north than previously expected. Scientists participating in the international MOSAiC expedition with research icebreaker Polarstern have found fish and squid in deep water in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. The results from Stockholm University, the Alfred Wegener Institute and colleagues in the European Fisheries Inventory in the Central Arctic Ocean (EFICA) Consortium are published today in the scientific journal Science Advances.
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