area into the Eurasian shelf seas. Ocean waters with salinities below the average salinity of the Arctic Ocean also contribute positively to the fresh water balance of the Arctic Ocean. Such waters flow in from the Nordic Seas. An interchange of waters between the Arctic and the Nordic seas results in in sea [...] : Alfred-Wegener-Institut) Figure 1: Surface circulation of the Arctic Ocean (Graphic: Alfred-Wegener-Institut) Figure 2: Mid-depth circulation in the Arctic Ocean, which is fed from the Atlantic. 129

planned open-ocean infrastructure FRAM (FRontiers in Arctic marine Monitoring) is permanent presence at sea, from surface to depth, for the provision [...] system dynamics, climate variability and ecosystem change. The FRAM Ocean Observing System will be installed in the gateway between the North Atlantic and the Central Arctic, representing a highly [...] Schewe, I., Klages, M., Boetius, A. (2013): FRAM - FRontiers in Arctic marine Monitoring: Permanent Observations in a Gateway to the Arctic Ocean. OCEANS - Bergen, 2013 MTS/IEEE. doi:10.1109/OCEANS Bergen

Arctic Ocean
Tiny gypsum crystals can make phytoplankton so heavy that they rapidly sink, hereby transporting large quantities of carbon to the ocean’s depths. Experts from the Alfred Wegener Institute recently observed this phenomenon for the first time in the Arctic. As a result

Arctic Ocean
More melt water is entering the Artic Ocean from the glaciers due to climbing temperatures. In addition, the rivers are carrying large amounts of sediment from thawing permafrost. How the Arctic Ocean will react to such changes is a very big question, which is concerning scientists around the world. Researchers from the Alfred

Ultraslow spreading mid-ocean ridges At mid-ocean ridges, the lithospheric plates move apart at rates of about 5-150 mm/year and new oceanic lithosphere is [...] ridges worldwide. Since ultraslow ridges are located in the Arctic Ocean and the stormy Southwest Indian Ocean and are therefore fairly difficult to reach, the spreading processes of this distinct [...] seismic activity of the Arctic Ridge System. We are particularly interested in the interaction of ocean and lithosphere at the enigmatic hydrothermal vents of the

, information on the geological history of the Arctic Ocean is still sparse. As the sea-ice recedes, the Arctic Ocean will see an explosion of research activities. With RV Polarstern, [...] techniques , AWIs geophysics group has played a leading role in Arctic Ocean geophysical research for many years and in various projects. Projects Formation of new seafloor at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (Photo: Alfred-Wegener-Institut)

Arctic Ocean
The Arctic has a serious litter problem: in just ten years, the concentration of marine litter at a deep-sea station in the Arctic Ocean has risen 20-fold. This was recently reported in a study by researchers at the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for

(AWI) have recently found higher amounts of microplastic in arctic sea ice than ever before. However, the majority of particles were microscopically small. The ice samples from five regions throughout the Arctic Ocean contained up to 12,000 microplastic particles per litre of sea ice. Further, the different types of plastic showed a unique [...] parts of the Arctic Ocean. The new study has just been released in the journal Nature Communications.

German Norwegian Ocean Forum
From the Arctic to the North Sea: this year’s German Norwegian Ocean Forum was held in Bremen’s Übersee Museum. The spotlight [...] the Royal Norwegian Embassy, was ‘The sustainable future of our oceans’. AWI Director Antje Boetius moderated the event.

specifically for polar missions by the French organisation Tara Ocean Foundation – is deliberately allowing itself to become trapped in the sea ice in order to explore the Arctic Ocean. Researchers from [...] a better understanding of the state of our planet’s only polar ocean, as well as the state of the Earth itself.