• How is the Arctic Ocean changing? – Research vessel Polarstern launches expedition to Arctic Ocean

    Press release

  • Ocean Warming and Thawing Permafrost Reduce the Arctic Ocean's Biological Carbon Storage and CO2 Uptake

    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.

  • Circulation in the Arctic Ocean and the Nordic Seas

    the Arctic Mediterranean. The Arctic Ocean freshwater budget The Arctic Ocean freshwater budget A particular feature of the Arctic Ocean is the enormous freshwater surplus. The upper Arctic Ocean receives [...] cover makes the Arctic Ocean distinct from subarctic oceans – the presence of ice, as well as ice formation and melt significantly shape the circulation and water masses of both the Arctic Ocean and the Nordic [...] Circulation in the Arctic Ocean and the Nordic Seas The Arctic Ocean and the Nordic Seas are integral parts of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, and hence key regions for the global climate

  • Fish and squid found in the Central Arctic Ocean

    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

  • Long-term observations in the Arctic Ocean

    Long-term observations in the Arctic Ocean Schematic of ocean circulation between the Arctic and neighbouring oceans: warm water paths (red), cold/fresh polar water paths (blue), regions of AWI focus in [...] circulation in the Eurasian Basin of the Arctic Ocean from the 1990s to the late 2000s ,OS Special Issue: Ice-Atmosphere-Ocean interactions in the Arctic Ocean during IPY: the Damocles project, 9 (1), [...] Fram Strait / West Spitsbergen Atlantic Water is the main oceanic source of heat, salt, and nutrients of the Arctic Ocean. It enters the Arctic Ocean through the Barents Sea or Fram Strait. In the eastern

  • The Arctic Ocean was never completely frozen – not even during the Ice Ages

    entire Arctic Ocean during the coldest phases of the Ice Ages. A new study, now published in Science Advances , questions this idea. The research team found no evidence of such a permanent, pan-Arctic ice [...] ice shelf. Instead, the Arctic Ocean appears to have been covered by seasonal sea ice, allowing open water—and life—to persist even during the harshest glacial periods of the past 750,000 years. This discovery [...] discovery sheds new light on how the Arctic has responded to climate extremes in the past—and how it may evolve in the future.

  • The Arctic Ocean was covered by a shelf ice and filled with freshwater

    the scientists could demonstrate that the Arctic Ocean as well as the Nordic Seas did not contain sea-salt in at least two glacial periods. Instead, these oceans were filled with large amounts of freshwater [...] Geosciences
    The Arctic Ocean was covered by up to 900 m thick shelf ice and was filled entirely with freshwater at least twice in the last 150,000 years. This surprising finding, reported in the latest

  • Heat from Below: How the Ocean is Wearing Down the Arctic Sea Ice

    Arctic Ocean
    The influx of warmer water masses from the North Atlantic into the European marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean plays a significant role in the marked decrease in sea-ice growth, especially [...] evident a year later, when the ice has drifted towards Greenland via the North Pole and leaves the Arctic through Fram Strait. This study also includes data from the MOSAiC expedition.

  • Which types of jellyfish are there in the Arctic Ocean today – and which will still be there tomorrow?

    research group, which will use cutting-edge technologies to create a jellyfish inventory for the Arctic Ocean. The group will receive financial support from the Helmholtz Association and the Alfred Wegener

  • 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