Archive of News and Press Releases

Weekly report

Satellite orbits and laser beams

On our way further south, we sailed on various courses and with different speeds.
de: Der Neubau des Alfred-Wegener-Instituts von 1986 in Bremerhaven, vom Kölner Architekten Oswald Ungers entworfen.
Online news

Science Day at the Alfred Wegener Institute

December 7 is the day of junior researchers at the Alfred Wegener Institute. From 9:00 to 15:00, graduates of all disciplines present their work in the lecture hall. AWI director Antje Boetius welcomes the PhD students, junior group leader Scarlett Trimborn gives a keynote lecture.
Infografik zu den globalen Kohlenstoffflüssen
Online news

Global Carbon Budget released

At the UN Climate Conference in Katowice, Poland, this year’s Global Carbon Budget was released. For the purpose of the budget, researchers estimate the anthropogenic carbon budget for the planet as a whole; this includes the sources (emissions), the carbon sinks on land and in the ocean, and the carbon content of the atmosphere. The report provides the figures for the year 2017 and offers an initial indicator of the general trend for 2018.
Zelte der AWI-Expedition auf der südlichen Taymyr Halbinsel
Press releases

How larches are conquering Siberia’s high northern reaches

Researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research have for the first time reconstructed the historical development of the larch forests in northern Siberia over the past 9,000 years. This allowed them to identify, which factors determine the ranges of various larch species, and to gauge the forests’ capacity for absorbing carbon dioxide – an aspect that is directly relevant with regard to potential shifts in the larches’ ranges in the future. Their findings indicate that not air temperature alone determines…
Polar cod in ice
Press releases

Climate refugee Cod

The latest research conducted by AWI experts that the chances of survival for the offspring of important fish species will dramatically worsen, if the 1.5 ° C target of the Paris Climate Agreement is not achieved. Under conditions of further warming and acidification of the ocean, Atlantic cod and its arctic relative polar cod would be forced to look for new habitats in the far north. Their populations could dwindle. If so, this could be disastrous, as the polar cod is the most important food source for Arctic seals and seabirds. In addition, fishers…
Weekly report

Polarstern in 3D

The arrival of Polarstern in the port of Las Palmas took a little longer, because the dedicated berth was occupied by another vessel. She drifted some miles away from the breakwater to wait for the pilot to come on board and the required permission to go alongside.
Hans-Otto Pörtner (left) and Christian Hamm
Short news

AWI Scientists are listed as Highly Cited Researchers

Two researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute are in the annual ranking of the "Highly Cited Researchers": marine biologist Hans-Otto Pörtner (l.) and Christian Hamm, head of Bionic Lightweight Design.
Online news

Representatives of the University of La Rochelle at the AWI

Today, a delegation from the French University of La Rochelle visits the Alfred Wegener Institute to discuss current and future projects.
Weekly report

Begin of the Antartic Season

RV Polarstern left Bremerhaven on 11th November with the high tide around noon. Due to extensive necessary amendments in the shipyard, the departure had been postponed by one day in comparison to the original time planning. This gave all participants the opportunity of a first quiet day on board to get familiar with the ship.
Ctenophore in the Arctic Ocean
Online news

Which types of jellyfish are there in the Arctic Ocean today – and which will still be there tomorrow?

In 2019, Charlotte Havermans will form a new four- to five-member research group, which will use cutting-edge technologies to create a jellyfish inventory for the Arctic Ocean. The group will receive financial support from the Helmholtz Association and the Alfred Wegener Institute.