After an expedition lasting around one month, a hard-working international group of young marine scientists is arriving in Walvis Bai in Namibia on board the Polarstern. They have been taking part in a specialised training voyage aboard the German research icebreaker.
The programme, led by Professor Karen Wiltshire of Trinity College Dublin and organised with the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) and further partner institutions (University of Galway, Met Éireann, die Shahjalal University of Science and Technology and the University of Bremen), offers early-career researchers hands-on experience in ocean science during a transit from Bremerhaven to Namibia. Some of the best teachers in the world - all also renowned scientists themselves - have given up their personal time and carried out this training.
![[Translate to English:] Ausbildungsfahrt mit Polarstern auf dem Atlantik](/fileadmin/user_upload/AWI/Ueber_uns/Service/Presse/2025/4_Quartal/OM_Ende_NoSoAT/20251119_Team_XBT_Caio_Ribeiro.jpg "Training cruise with Polarstern on the Atlantic")
During the voyage, the participants have been taught how to see, understand and sample the ocean. They have been taught how to deliberate science critically, how to understand and communicate the express warming of the ocean. In their classes they have rotated through core areas of oceanographic research, including CTD Rosette Water Sampler, plankton identification, water-column profiling, and real-time data collection using satellite observations and the ship’s automated systems. Additional onboard teams have been sharing bathymetric and atmospheric measurements, enriching the interdisciplinary training.
A highlight of this year’s programme is the introduction of “The Dance of the Carbon Cycle,” a novel and edutaining activity trained on board to help explain how fossil fuel emissions disrupt the natural balance of carbon on Earth, driving climate change. Through movement, storytelling, and science, the Scholars are learning—and embodying—how carbon should circulate, and what happens when human activities overload the system. They will share this unique teaching tool with colleagues in Namibia, and the scholars plan to take the “dance” into classrooms and communities worldwide.
This year also marks the introduction of a new training pathway for prospective teachers, aimed at strengthening ocean literacy and training across the globe.
Professor Wiltshire emphasises the impact: “This voyage is a real gift - we all have grown and learnt so much. The intercultural training experience embedded into the everyday life on board with a stellar crew is a mission of peaceful science. Experiencing ocean research first-hand aboard a vessel like the Polarstern is transformative for young scientists and future educators.”