Since the early 20th century hydrographic measurements have been carried out in the Arctic Ocean. Although today the Arctic is a hotspot of climate change, data sampling is still sparse due to the large sea [...] climate studies in the Arctic Ocean. Many of the collected data are publicly available, but scattered across different electronic archives. Consequently, scientists working on Arctic climate change have to [...] awi.de The „Unified Database for Arctic and Subarctic Hydrography“ (UDASH) is an attempt to gather all publicly available temperature and salinity data for the Arctic Ocean and to provide them on a high quality

Currents transport plastic debris through the ocean, allowing it to accumulate even in remote areas like the Arctic. Unlike beach debris, the plastics in the ocean cannot be readily removed – and breaks down [...] intense research have shown that garbage can be found throughout the world’s oceans. Even in the most remote parts of the ocean, like the polar regions or the bottom of the deep sea, we can find large amounts [...] element Where does plastic debris end up? A great deal of the debris in and on the ocean ends up on beaches or the ocean floor. Especially deep-sea trenches have essentially become deposition sites for large

Broad expanses of the Arctic Ocean and the Southern Ocean in the Antarctic are covered in sea ice. The ice plays a vital role in our climate system and is an important component of Arctic and Antarctic habitats [...] most frequently takes place in the Arctic and Antarctic. Depending on the season, the ice covers greater or lesser parts of the ocean. In the Northern Hemisphere, the ocean gradually freezes over in the course [...] its highest extent in September. In summer, the Southern Ocean is virtually ice-free. The research aircraft Polar 6 flies over the Arctic Ocean during a sea ice thickness campagne. (Photo: Esther Horvath)

Tallinna Tehnikaülikool (Estonia) Gronlands Naturinstitut (Greenland) Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme Secretariat World Ocean Council EU-PolarNet Participants (Photo: Alfred Wegener Institut)

becoming more frequent and intense. The Arctic Ocean also suffers from this development: The absence of sea ice will lead to more extreme fluctuations in ocean temperatures, with abrupt temperature changes [...] Wegener Institute shows how marine heatwaves will also become much more intense and frequent in the Arctic in the 21st century. With drastic consequences for the ecosystem. The researchers published their

The Arctic experiences some of the most rapid climate changes on the planet, resulting in significant sea-ice melt. This transformation exposed the Arctic Ocean to increasing sunlight, driving a 56% rise [...] nutrients and carbon into the Arctic Ocean, delivered from rivers and coastal erosion. While it might seem logical that these additional nutrients would enhance the ocean’s biological carbon pump, - boosting [...] ecosystem impoverishment are undermining the pump’s efficiency, challenging assumptions about the Arctic’s ability to store carbon in a warming world.

the Arctic environment? What changed in the Arctic over the last decades? What is permafrost? How does thawing permafrost affect the Arctic environment? How does thawing permafrost affect Arctic infr [...] explore the conflict of interests of different Arctic stakeholders. Lesson Plan Permafrost in the Arctic Living in the wild North The Permafrost Risk The Ocean Race Summit Dr. Rebecca Rolph was an invited [...] all-hands-on-deck meeting at the Ocean’s Race, an organization holds sailing races around the world. The Ocean’s Race has a growing interest in promoting sustainability and ocean conservation practices, and

specially adapted biotic community. Ice-covered seascape in the Arctic Ocean (Photo: Esther Horvath) The deep sea in the polar regions In the Arctic, living at the bottom of the sea poses unique challenges for [...] standards. For another, food is harder to come by. The central Arctic Ocean is largely covered with ice and – unlike the Antarctic’s Southern Ocean – surrounded by landmasses. Exchanges with the Atlantic and [...] than we do about the ocean depths. Yet the deep sea is not a habitat fully separated from the surface; it is already undergoing dramatic changes in response to warmer water, ocean acidification and en

enough, some of these are made public. The use in research applications is usually free. Examples: Ocean Data View, a programme to visualise large geo-referenced data files UltraMassExplorer, a browser-based [...] Quicklinks Technology transfer - From research to business Technology Transfer Office Spin-offs Ocean Data View Inventions, innovative technologies and services originate, e.g. from the following R&D [...] Alfred-Wegener-Institute is one of the few institutions worldwide that conduct research both in the Arctic and Antarctic. The expertise of AWI with research in polar regions and the operation of the required

l research team is now bringing back from a Polarstern expedition to the Central Arctic. After a four-month-long Arctic season, the Alfred Wegener Institute’s research icebreaker is expected to arrive