• Implementation

    species we work with in the Southern Ocean are krill, specifically Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba and the gelatinous pelagic tunicate Salpa thompsoni . In the Arctic Ocean, we work with the krill species

  • Site Infos

    Potsdam carry out expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic. They are mainly devoted to Arctic research - in particular in the permanently frozen areas of Siberia and the Arctic island group Spitzbergen - and [...] in the system. German Arctic Office Since 2017, the German Arctic Office at AWI Potsdam serves as an information and cooperation platform for German stakeholders invested in Arctic science, politics and [...] Wegener Institute started its work in 1992. The scientific focus is the investigation of polar land-ocean-atmosphere linkages, complementing the marine and coastal research fields at the AWI sites in Bremerhaven

  • Boundary layer processes

    between atmosphere and ocean. This concerns both hemispheres since cold-air outbreaks occur in the Arctic and Antarctic as well. Typical regions for cold-air outbreaks in the Arctic are the Fram Strait and [...] of the lower atmosphere with sea ice and ocean is strongly influenced by processes caused by the surface morphology, which is characterized in the Polar ocean regions first of all by the sea ice cover [...] over Arctic leads, Q. J. R. Meteorol. Soc. 141: 2839–2856, DOI:10.1002/qj.2568 Radiation We particularly focus on surface albedo, the ratio of reflected to incoming solar radiation. In the Arctic, we mainly

  • Boundary layer processes

    between atmosphere and ocean. This concerns both hemispheres since cold-air outbreaks occur in the Arctic and Antarctic as well. Typical regions for cold-air outbreaks in the Arctic are the Fram Strait and [...] of the lower atmosphere with sea ice and ocean is strongly influenced by processes caused by the surface morphology, which is characterized in the Polar ocean regions first of all by the sea ice cover [...] Polar Atmospheric Boundary Layer - Observations and Small Scale Modelling Temperature profiles over Arctic sea ice during summer. Boundary layer heights amount here to about 60 m (blue) and 500 m (red) (Graphic:

  • Technology and Logistics

    backbone of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) is the Argo system, which uses an array of >3000 profiling floats (Figure 2). Until recently, Argo was restricted to ice free oceanic regions, as the floats [...] Technology and Logistics Observations of the ocean’s temperature and salinity at different locations and depths – key parameters to assess its state - depended until recently on ship-based expeditions [...] and deep-sea moorings, limiting our ability to monitor oceanic change at adequate resolution and over necessary periods in time and space. However, with the turn of the century, automated systems gained

  • Graduate School POLMAR

    ice dynamics - Arctic climate and ocean dynamics - Earth system modelling - Terrestrial Arctic ecosystems and permafrost Biosciences: - Marine, coastal and shelf sea systems - Arctic ocean ecology and impacts

  • Expedition

    Tromsö Chief Scientist: R. Stein Cruise report Programme Weekly reports Data PS87 | ARK-XXVIII/4 | Arctic Ocean, Central Basin Start: 2014-08-05, Tromsö End: 2014-10-08, Bremerhaven Chief Scientist: R. Stein [...] Chief Scientist: R. Gersonde Cruise report Programme Weekly reports Data PS72 | ARK-XXIII/3 | Arctic Ocean Start: 2008-08-12, Reykjavik End: 2008-10-17, Bremerhaven Chief Scientist: W. Jokat Cruise report

  • Molecular Sea Ice Ecology

    Molecular Sea Ice Ecology Polar oceans are seasonally covered by sea ice with an average size of the continent of North America. Despite harsh conditions therein, sea ice and its lower surface can carry [...] community, typically dominated by Diatoms. Sea ice can provide important primary production to polar oceans via these communities, although they are often very patchy. In times of declining sea ice coverage [...] biodiversity, functions provided by its biota, and the future of sea ice communities in a warming ocean. We address these questions through analyses of total communities, their molecular biodiversity and

  • Polar 5 + 6

    degrees Celsius. The polar 6 research aircraft of the Alfred Wegener Institute flies over the Arctic Ocean during an IceBird sea ice thickness campagne. (Photo: Esther Horvath) AWI researchers use the [...] the Earth’s crust, ice- and snow-covered areas, oceans and the atmosphere. Several times a year, Polar 5 and Polar 6 fly weeks-long expeditions in the Arctic and Antarctic. They carry on board a diverse range [...] Alfred Wegener Institute’s research is conducted in the inaccessible, ice-covered regions of the Arctic and Antarctic, making research aircraft indispensable. Currently the AWI relies on the research planes

  • Home

    largest Arctic expedition in history: on 12 October 2020 our research vessel Polarstern returned after a year-long drift. Find out more UN Ocean Conference 2025 Find out more UN Decade of Ocean Science [...] in the Arctic Find out more Online news Bipolar seesaw out of balance A look at the history of our planet‘s climate reveals: Surprisingly, there were periods in the past when glaciers in the Arctic and Antarctic [...] decades, the crews and employees of the F. Laeisz shipping company have supported AWI research in the Arctic and Antarctic, both on land and at sea. Laeisz has operated the Polarstern since New Year's Eve 1995