Anniversary
It has already been five years since the MOSAiC expedition ended in Bremerhaven on 12 October 2020. For those who want to reminisce: here is the video for Welcome back.
An entire year trapped in the Arctic ice
MOSAiC - Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate
It is the largest-scale Arctic research expedition of all time: From autumn 2019 onwards, the German research icebreaker Polarstern drifted through the Arctic Ocean, trapped in the ice. Participants from institutions from more than 20 countries studied the Arctic over the course of the year. They overwintered in a region which is virtually unreachable during polar night. Only the force of nature that is ice drift offered them this unique opportunity. On an ice floe, they pitched a research camp and connected it to a network of measuring stations stretching for miles.
Hardly any other region has warmed as much as the Arctic in recent decades. Therefore, the MOSAiC project's goal was to reach a better understanding of the influence that the Arctic has on the global climate. Hence, it is a milestone for climate research, and the data obtained will be valuable for generations to come. The mission was spearheaded by the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), and presented unprecedented challenges. An international fleet of icebreakers, helicopters and aircraft supplied the team on this extreme route. United forces led the expedition to success. By October 2025, well over 200 scientific publications have been published – and work with this unique treasure trove of data continues.
News
Photosynthesis in near darkness
Photosynthesis can take place in nature even at extremely low light levels. This is the result of an international study that investigated the development of Arctic microalgae at the end of the polar night. The measurements were carried out as part of the MOSAiC expedition at 88° northern latitude and revealed that even this far north, microalgae can build up biomass through photosynthesis as early as the end of March. At this time, the sun is barely above the horizon, so that it is still almost completely dark in the microalgae's habitat under the snow and ice cover of the Arctic Ocean. The results of the study now published in the
New dataset reveals biological “treasure trove” of Arctic Ocean
A major new project will help benchmark biodiversity change in the Arctic Ocean and guide conservation efforts by identifying unique species and assessing their extinction risk. The research led by scientists from the Alfred Wegener Institute and the University of East Anglia is now published in PLOS Biology, futher informations can be found in this UAE's press release.
Arctic Circle Prize
Antje Boetius and Markus Rex accept Arctic Circle Prize
The Alfred Wegener Institute and the MOSAiC research expedition were awarded the Arctic Circle Prize on Saturday, 15 October 2022 in Reykjavik. With the prize, the international organisation Arctic Circle recognises extraordinary contributions to securing a sustainable and prosperous future in the Arctic. This is the third time the prize has been awarded since 2016, previous winners being Ban Ki-moon (then Secretary General of the United Nations) and John Kerry (former US Secretary of State and US Chair of the Arctic Council).
MOSAiC Expedition
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.
MOSAiC Expedition
Deep insights into the Arctic of tomorrow
Hundreds of international researchers are currently analyzing observations from the one-year MOSAiC expedition, during which hundreds of environmental parameters were recorded with unprecedented accuracy and frequency over a full annual cycle in the Central Arctic Ocean. They have now published three overview articles on the MOSAiC atmosphere, snow and sea ice, and ocean programs in the journal Elementa, highlighting the importance of examining all components of the climate system together.
Info Graphics
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Polarstern Infographic
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The transpolar drift
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The expedition in numbers
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Factsheet on Sustainability