The role of clouds and warm air masses from the open ocean for the rapid warming of the Arctic is at the heart of a recent Alfred Wegener Institute project on Svalbard. The researchers are applying a new

suitable ice floe, where they will set up the research camp for their one-year-long drift through the Arctic Ocean. Consequently, one of the most important milestones in the expedition has been reached ahead of

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 [...] 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 could lose the world’s most productive area for catching

Anniversary
40 years of research in the Arctic, Antarctic and in coastal regions: on 15 July, the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) celebrates its 40 th [...] and internationally recognised centre for climate research in the two polar regions and the world’s oceans.

funded by JPI Oceans and will create new knowledge and improve our mechanistic understanding of the sources, transport, occurrence, and fate of small microplastics from European waters to the Arctic. The consortium

ecosystems must always keep the polar regions in mind. The Arctic and Antarctic, for example, play a central role in the system of global ocean currents, and the large but shrinking ice sheets are important

north of Svalbard, as well as ocean/glacier interactions off the coast of Greenland. Central research questions included how the ice conditions, ocean heat fluxes and ocean stratification determine sea-ice [...] The Research Vessel Polarstern was in the Arctic for the past seven weeks. There, the summertime sea-ice extent declined by ca. 40 percent over the past 40 years – making it one of the most visible impacts

drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate) expedition between the autumns of 2019 and 2020. For a year, the research ship drifted through the Arctic, frozen in ice. The goal was to gain a better [...] better understanding of the complex interaction between the ocean, the ice, the atmosphere and the ecosystem. Through the MOSAiC expedition, hundreds of scientists representing institutions from across [...] significant contributions to the global understanding of climate feedback mechanisms in the central Arctic.

Climate Research
The Arctic Ocean in summer will very likely be ice free before 2050, at least temporally. The efficacy of climate-protection measures will determine how often and for how long. These

(17/18 Sep 18). A new week begins - fog, calm sea, ice free. Nothing reminds us that we are in the Arctic Ocean (but this may change soon when are steaming northwards end of this week!).