Archive of News and Press Releases
![[Translate to English:] Prof. Dr. Jörn Thiede](/fileadmin/_processed_/c/a/csm_2006_GrundsteinlegungJoernThiede_9_HGernandt_06e005a970.jpg "Prof. Dr Jörn Thiede")
Happy Birthday, Jörn Thiede!
The German polar and marine research community pays him high respect and tribute. Prof. Dr Jörn Thiede, founding director of today's GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and long-time director of the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research in Bremerhaven, celebrates his 80th birthday today. Due to Corona, instead of a large festive event with many guests, many companions sent him their birthday wishes in personal video messages.
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Heading North
We are still sailing northwards through the subtropics and heading for the tropics, free from corona concerns. Nevertheless, the pandemic remains a dominant subject, even with everyone enjoying the time without masks and lockdown.
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![[Translate to English:] Granaten](/fileadmin/_processed_/1/a/csm_Bild_2__c__Vlaams_Instituut_voor_de_Zee__VLIZ__58f2ac0f2f.jpg "Bild_2__c__Vlaams_Instituut_voor_de_Zee__VLIZ_.JPG")
Sunken ammunition: danger with long-term effects
Stormy weather and strict hygiene regulations put the science crew to the test. After a delay of almost two days due to weather conditions and several days of scheduled quarantine, the captain of the HEINCKE gave the command "cast off" on Thursday morning and set course for Helgoland. The research team of the "North Sea Wrecks" project collected samples around the wreck of the warship SMS MAINZ off the North Sea island. They will be used to investigate the extent to which the ship from the First World War, which was sunk together with its ammunition,…
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Escaped from Corona again!
After a two-week quarantine in Bremerhaven, we once again escaped Corona without any infection and thus, able to enter our "infection-free bubble" on the ship for the return journey to Bremerhaven.
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Assessing the Impacts of Nodule Mining on the Deep-Sea Environment
Scientists of the JPI Oceans project “MiningImpact” are embarking on a 6-week expedition to the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone (CCZ) in the Pacific. Their goal is to carry out independent scientific monitoring of the test of a pre-prototype nodule collector machine conducted in parallel from a second vessel by the Belgian company Global Sea Mineral Resources (GSR). “MiningImpact” fully adheres to good scientific practice and all data will be made publicly available. The findings of this integrated impact analysis will be transferred into…
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Photographs from the Arctic
Michael Gutsche has given the AWI three large-format photos on permanent loan. The photographer took the impressive nature photos during the Arctic expedition "MOSAiC". Together with AWI director Antje Boetius, Gutsche unveiled the photos at the institute's location in Bremerhaven. There they now adorn the walls in the foyer of building E and in the entrance area of buildings A / B / C. The images show, among other things, how quickly the weather conditions in the Arctic can change and how fragile this ecosystem is.
Our long-term ocean observatories
The southern Weddell Sea is home of the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf (FRIS). FRIS is the largest (by volume) floating ice shelf on the planet and therefore quite an important feature in the Antarctic Ice Sheet system, which is directly relevant for our global climate and sea level.
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“Face-to-face” Teaching at Last
Every year, ten international scholarship holders from all corners of the globe come to the Alfred Wegener Institute’s two island-based sites. The POGO-Nippon Foundation Centre of Excellence trains them to become oceanography experts.
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The biogeochemistry of the water column
There are several reasons why the Southern Ocean and the Weddell Sea are extraordinary. Not only are its ice formation and unique fauna awe inspiring, but it also plays a crucial role in regulating our planet’s climate.
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MOSAiC Expedition Briefing for the Arctic Council
MOSAiC expedition leader Markus Rex informed the Arctic Council about the Arctic drift expedition and presented the first results. The Arctic Council is the leading cross-national forum for the Arctic. Germany has observer status in the Arctic Council and is represented by the Foreign Office. Senior Arctic Official Chair, Ambassador Einar Gunnarsson, thanked Markus Rex for his presentation and congratulated Germany and all other nations involved in this historic expedition.