Archive of News and Press Releases
Open waters around the North Pole: Arctic sea ice in retreat
This September, the Arctic sea ice extent has shrunk to 4.1 million square kilometres (sq km)-the second lowest in the history of satellite measurements. It is exceeded only by the all-time record low of 3.4 million sq km in 2012. "Once again, a massive loss of sea ice in the Arctic," says Prof. Lars Kaleschke from Universität Hamburg's Center for Earth System Research and Sustainability (CEN). His colleague Prof. Christian Haas from the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) confirms: "The trend continues." Currently, the Northeast and Northwest Passages are…
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The expedition comes to an end
Today we have completed our research programme at the Knipovich Ridge south of Fram Strait. We are now on the transit toward Tromsø, where we will arrive in the morning of 6 September.
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At the 79° Glacier
Yesterday we finished our investigations in the close vicinity of the 79°N glacier. Now R/V Polarstern is exploring the southern end of Westwind Trough on the inner shelf. We had already paid a visit to the outer part of this depression earlier in the expedition.
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The Potsdam Summer School starts with young talents from all over the world
How to avoid the unmanageable and manage the unavoidable will be the focus of the Potsdam Summer School from September 5-14, bringing together more than 40 early-career scientists and young professionals from all around the globe.
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Working in Norske Trog
Meanwhile R/V Polarstern has worked her way toward the inner shelf of Northeast Greenland. We have reached the transition from Norske Trough to Westwind Trough, which is where the 79°N glacier meets the sea. In this region, sea ice often prevails the whole year round.
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Back at the Greenland Ice Shelf
In sunny weather and light sea ice conditions we find ourselves once again on the shelf of Greenland –this time in Norske Trough. In the beginning of the week we were able to accomplish most of the oceanographic, biological and biogeochemical workload planned along the zonal transect through central Fram Strait along 78°50’N. Subsequently we added to the mooring array deployed along the Greenwich Meridian in the second week of the expedition the southernmost mooring at 78°10’N.
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25 years of the Arctic Station in Svalbard
25 years ago, the German Arctic Station in Svalbard was officially opened by the former directors of the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), Prof. Gotthilf Hempel and Dr Rainer Paulenz, as well as the BMBF State Secretary, Mr. Bernd Neumann.
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Questions about climate change
After having reached the northernmost point of the expedition at the end of last week, we moved southeastward across the East Greenland Current toward the continental shelf of Northeast Greenland, that we reached at the outlet of Westwind Trough.
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Turbulent recirculation
Meanwhile R/V Polarstern has reached the northernmost location planned for the GRIFF expedition. The last week was characterized by intense station work both in the West Spitsbergen Current and in central Fram Strait.
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The 100th expedition
In the evening of 18 July the research ice breaker Polarstern left the port of Tromsö (Norway) in cloudy and windy conditions to start its 100th expedition. On board there are scientists from 13 nations who cover the range from physical oceanography, geochemistry, geodesy, geology, geophysics, seismology, marine biology, biochemistry and mechanical engineering.
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