Tag Archives: forskning

PolarFront project on their way to unveil the mysteries of the Polar Front in the Barents Sea

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The project PolarFront is heading towards the Polar Front of the Barents Sea with the research vessel Helmer Hansen. The PolarFront project will investigate the pelagic ecosystem using new technologies like remote controlled sea-robots (gliders and sail buoys) alongside of tradition sampling methods.

FF Helmer Hansen. Photo: UiT

We know the polar front is sensitive to changes, but not how much and in what ways

The scientist will examine all living things in the ocean at the polar front, from the smallest bacteria to the large whales. This is the first of three research cruises in the project. They will study the seasonal variations of the ecosystems and the abiotic factors as currents, salinity, temperature and nutrition availability.

The polar front is not only a project, but also the area surrounding the poles where cold polar air and sea meet the warmer air and water. Our knowledge from this area is incomplete and the project wants to fill in some of the knowledge gaps. The border of the Polar Front is where the denser and warmer Atlantic water meets the lighter and colder polar water.

New applications of new technology to map both the physical properties of the ocean and living organisms are interesting for the energy industry

As we humans are using more and more of the remote areas of our globe the chances of industry breaking grounds in these areas are also larger. In the future this might also include the Polar Front. We therefore need more knowledge on biological and physical boundaries in the vast areas of our planet.

The project has two partners from the energy industry. Their interest lies in exploring the use of autonomous technologies to monitor and explore remote areas, and also in gaining more insights into the ecological importance of the polar front region improve ecological informed risk assessments for their activities.

Loizos Grouta is prepping the gliders that we will deploy out in the sea this evening. Photo: Sunniva Katharina Thode/ UiT

The first two days onboard

On board are 23 scientists, students, and technicians living together with the vessel crew of 11 people. The first day of the cruise was spent setting up the labs and strapping it down to secure them against the movements from the waves. After security rounds with trying on survival suits and walking the different emergency exit routes, several went to their cabins to battle their seasickness.

This evening Helmer Hansen will reach the first station at approximately 75 degrees north and 30 degrees east. Here the scientist and students will do their first samplings working into the night. The day has been spent preparing the equipment for the first station. The next few days will show how far north the vessel can reach. Right now, the ice is covering the areas where the next stations are.

Maxime Geoffroy is preparing the tucker trawl. Photo: Sunniva Katharina Thode/ UiT.

The planed stations are mostly covered in ice. The scientist onboard hope the ice will drift north in order to reach the planned stations. Photo: PolarFront.

The Polar Front project is a collaboration between Akvaplan Niva, UiT the Arctic university of Norway, The Norwegian Polar Institute, The Scottish Association for Marine Science, Institute of Oceanology and Memorial University of Newfoundland. In addition, the energy companies Equinor and ConocoPhillips are partners.

Første inntrykk fra praksis hos NIBIO

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Skrevet av Sigrid Vold Jensen, masterstudent ved Institutt for arktisk og marin biologi.

Jeg er masterstudent innen arktiske dyrs fysiologi ved UiT Norges arktiske universitet. Denne våren er jeg så heldig å være praksisstudent ved NIBIO. NIBIO er et av Norges største forskningsinstitutt og jeg skal få en smakebit på arbeidshverdagen til en biolog ute i næringslivet. Praksisen er en del av kurset BIO-2014 Praksis i næringslivet for biologistudenter.

Mitt inntrykk er at biologisk arbeid favner bredt og gir mange ulike muligheter i arbeidslivet. Det er både «a blessing and a curse» for en ubesluttsom person som meg. Da jeg hørte om muligheten for utplassering i praksis, så måtte jeg bare gripe sjansen. Jeg gleder meg til å utvide horisonten utover det jeg har erfart ved universitetet. Som jo spesielt de to siste årene har gitt meg plenty av teoretiske akademiske ferdigheter med alle de digitale undervisningene vi har hatt på grunn av korona. Nå er jeg klar for å gjøre!


Bilde fra felt på Ljøssøya i januar, med meg og turfølget Mats, Emil og Jonathan. Foto: privat.

Så hvorfor NIBIO? På en karrieredag for biologistudenter bet jeg meg merke i NIBIO.  De bidrar til bærekraftig ressursforvaltning og mattrygghet med forskning og kunnskapsproduksjon. NIBIO har mange prosjekter om dyr som holder til i nordområdene. Det er det som er mitt i fokus i min utdanning og derfor jeg kontaktet nettopp NIBIO for praksisopphold.

Jeg fikk napp, og jeg har nå startet praksisoppholdet mitt ved NIBIO ved avdeling Tromsø. Mine oppgaver blir varierte. Jeg har mest praktiske oppgaver knyttet til felt og noe kontorarbeid med databehandling og kvalitetssikring. Jeg være med på prosjekter innen reindrift, grågås-problematikken i landbruket og sjørøye. Hvis jeg får muligheten, trår jeg nok også til på andre prosjekter.

Til nå har jeg deltatt på merking av reinsdyr med satellittsendere ute i felt, gjort videoanalyse for identifisering av søvnmønster hos reinsdyr og gjort retting og kvalitetssikring av rapporter. Jeg gleder meg til fortsettelsen!

Bærekraftig forbruk av klær og fiskeriforvaltning

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Under Forskningsdagene 2021 har vi vært rundt på barneskoler, ungdomsskoler og videregående skoler. Elevene har lært hvordan vi forsker på dyr i havet og hvordan vi kan forbruke klær på en mer bærekraftig måte. 

Laurene og Michaela lærte elevene om fiskeriforvaltning. Foto: Sunniva Katharina Thode.

Laurene Pecuchet og Michaela Aschan lærte elevene hvordan vi forsker på marin økologi. På “tokt” i klasserommet fikk elevene sorterte fisk og bruke bøker for å finne ut hvilke arter de hadde. De lærte hvordan vi måler og teller fisk og hvordan vi kan vite hvor mye fisk det er i et havområde. Lauren og Michaela fortalte også hvordan forskerne gir råd til regjerningen om hvor store kvotene bør være.

Sarah lærte elevene om bærekraftig forbruk av klær. Foto: Sunniva Katharina Thode.

Sarah Lisa Andersen har lært elevene hvordan vi kan forbruke klær mer bærekraftig. Visste du at tekstilindustrien er den industrien med størst karbonavtrykk etter oljen? Og at moteindustrien alene står for 10% av CO2-utslippet på jorden? Det visste ikke skoleelevene heller. Sarah lærte elevene om bærekraftig utvikling, adferd og hvordan marked endres mens hun gikk gjennom en liste på 6 ting vi kan gjøre for å forbruke klærne bærekraftig.

Når det ikke er korona kan vi invitere skoler og familier til oss på Utforsk UiT under Forskningsdagene. I år, som i fjor, kunne vi ikke det. «Bestill en forsker» har vært mulig og våre forskere ble raskt fullbooket. Forskerne våre hadde til sammen opplegg for 15 ulike klasser i Tromsø kommune. Paul Wassmann og Lars Folkow har også holdt foredrag for elever på Nord-Troms videregående. Neste år håper vi at vi kan ha både Utforsk UiT og Bestill en forsker. Takk til forskerne, lærerne og elevene.

 

The Barents Sea Polar Front Study 2021 – student immersion into cutting edge science

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Written by Professor Rolf Gradinger, Department of Arctic and marine biology.

Barents Sea ecosystems supports one of the most economically valuable fisheries on Earth. But the high latitudes are changing drastically with the climate changes. It is uncertain if and how the future Barents Sea will function in the future. Will food web interactions change and current species disappear and be replaced by other taxa? This challenging question is the major focus of the Norwegian Arven etter Nansen project supported by other ongoing research.

In May 2021, the research and education network ARCTOS teamed up with Arven etter Nansen to investigate the biology in the dynamic frontal zone between Arctic and North Atlantic water masses in the so-called Polar Front region east of Svalbard. During the 11-day long expedition onboard Helmer Hansen (a UiT research vessel), we did not only conduct cutting edge research but also provided a framework for education of early career scientists as part of the UiT course BIO-8510.

Study area and station map of the ARCTOS-AeN Polar Front study (ARCTOS).

The expedition crossed the Polar Front twice and collected samples. We wanted to explore and understand the distribution patterns and activity of plankton, fish, seafloor living creatures, marine mammals, and relate these patterns and their activities to how this frontal zone was structured. Was it just a boundary, separating Arctic from Atlantic domains and species? Or does it have unique dynamics leading to e.g., enhanced food availabilities to sea birds and marine mammals creating an oasis in the desert?

In addition to the use of traditional sampling devices , we used innovative new tools. These new tools were two gliders and two sailbuoys (sponsored by Equinor) and fast repetition rate fluorometers. They provide insights into both the small-scale distributions and physiology and broad-scale distributions of marine organisms which is not possible to be assessed with normal ship-board instruments. Sea ice limited our ability to trawl and use gliders in the northern part of the Polar Front, but provided us with a short insight into the life of two polar bears. The crew of Helmer Hanssen provided us with outstanding support to our many wishes, not minding the frequent adjustments of the scientific program.

Our first results show that we sampled a well-developed frontal system with clear separation of Arctic and Atlantic water, combined different community patterns on all trophic levels. We also encountered an exceptionally strong microalgal spring bloom, dominated by millions of diatom microalgae in the water column. Further conclusions must wait now for the data analyses which are currently conducted and will be summarized at the upcoming AeN annual meeting, and a dedicated Polar Front workshop end of this year.

Examples of microalgal species encountered during the expedition (R. Gradinger).

The PhD level teaching component (BIO-8510), organized through ARCTOS and UiT, attracted 15 early career scientists from Norwegian, UK and US universities. They had widely ranging interests, from remote sensing, ocean physics to marine mammal acoustics. All students participated in research programs, whether it was algal activity measurements or the study of benthic macrofauna. Participating senior researchers came from Akvaplan-niva, NINA, and UiT. This experience provided the students with a unique training in Arctic Systems Science, a holistic view looking at interconnections between different components of the living and non-living parts of the Barents Sea. Without the excellent student engagement, their energy and commitment, this expedition would not have been able to achieve the broad scientific success that we had. Although the course has officially ended, the participating students have been invited to be involved in future sample analyses, data processing and manuscript writing.

Students analysing zooplankton samples (R. Gradinger).

The cruise participant nationalities included Brazil, Canada, China, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Iran, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Switzerland, UK, and USA. The combination of home institutions and diversity of nationalities allowed all participants to further build their networks of scientific connections and culture experiences – both important attributes for successful career and personal growth.

Celebrating May 17, 2021 onboard Helmer Hanssen (ARCTOS).

To make reasonable predictions is a task given rightfully to us scientists from the public. Such predictions can only be as good as the data that are used to develop them. Only field-going research like this AeN and ARCTOS partnership can solve the puzzle how the future Barents Sea will work, and if it will continue to sustain one of the most economically important fisheries on Earth. Therefore, information from our cruise is critical as the Barents Sea is a sea in change, driven by multiple human stressors. This research will continue as we in an ARCTOS consortium were just awarded funding from the Norwegian Research Council (in cooperation with Equinor and Conoco Philips) to continue our Polar Front research through further seasonal research cruises and extended science missions with May 2022 as next targeted time window, again together with BIO-8510.

Further reading:

En reise til det kjente ukjente.

Livet på havbunnen.

Fyrstehandserfaring om bord FF Helmer Hanssen.

Der det varme Atlanterhavsvannet møter Arktisk kulde.

ARCTOS-Nansen Legacy Polar Front cruise.

Where the Atlantic heat meets the Arctic Cold.

Departure into the known unknown.

First experience onboard the RV “Helmer Hanssen”.

Life at the seabed: studying bottom-dwelling fish and invertebrates across the polar front.

Uncovering the hidden link in glacier melting

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Written by Euan Paterson, Communications and Media Officer at The Scottish Association for Marine Science. First published here.

The team will examine fresh water flow from the Kronebreen glacier. Photo: SAMS.

Marine scientists will today (Friday) deploy robotic vehicles on a dangerous mission to the face of a glacier in Svalbard as they attempt to expose the hidden link in how rapidly melting Arctic ice is changing our ocean.

The mission to Ny Ålesund, the world’s most northerly settlement, is a collaboration between the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), UiT The Arctic University of Norway, the Norwegian Polar Institute and University Centre on Svalbard. The team will examine the Kronebreen glacier in Kongsfjorden, measuring the freshwater run-off as it melts, and assessing how it interacts with the saltier sea water coming into the fjord from the North Atlantic.

Humans are unable to sample at the glacier face because of the risk of huge chunks of ice collapsing into the sea below, a process known as glacier calving.

Instead, the team will use an autonomous surface vehicle (ASV) built by Norwegian company Maritime Robotics, to record various oceanographic measurements at the face of the glacier, while an autonomous underwater vehicle, known as an ecoSUB, will take temperature, salinity and oxygen readings below the surface. Meanwhile, aerial drones will survey the so-called freshwater ‘plumes’ that run off from the glacier.

Lead scientist Prof Finlo Cottier of SAMS said: “Fjords are the connection between the changing ocean and our rapidly melting northern glaciers. The transfer of heat and water at these points, often just a few kilometres wide, are therefore extremely important in understanding how climate change is impacting our ocean.

“However, as these areas are too dangerous to survey fully and too small to be picked up on global ocean models, the interactions between fjords and glaciers have not been sufficiently represented in ocean and climate predictions.

“We need to know much more about the fresh water coming into the ocean: How much is there? Where does it end up? How does it move?

“It would simply be too dangerous to go into such a hostile and remote environment with a boat. Not only is there a risk of falling ice, but large-scale calving causes huge waves, so it is a dangerous place. That is where the robotic systems come into their own, working at the front line of Arctic science.”

While rising global temperatures increase glacial melt, glaciers are also breaking up below the surface of the water. In a process known as sub-glacial discharge, melt water flows down through the glacier and out into the ocean. This water is fresher than the surrounding sea water, so starts to rise in the water column, creating a plume that pulls in warmer Atlantic water which increases the melt rate at the face of the glacier. This process undermines the wall of ice, causing huge chunks to collapse into the sea.

The marine robotics deployed by the team will collect crucial data to improve our understanding of this process.

Dr. Emily Venables will pilot the ASV during the mission. Photo: UiT The Arctic University of Norway

The project is funded through the Norwegian research centre, The Fram Centre, under the Coasts and Fjords flagship programme.

BREATHE skal finne ut hvordan det vil gå med havisalgene i fremtiden

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Et nytt prosjekt, BREATHE, skal forske på havisalger i Arktis. Havisalgene er viktige i det marine miljøet. Men vi vet for lite om hvordan de lever i isen og hvordan de påvirkes av klimaendringene. Da er det vanskelig å spå hva som vil skje med dem og de som er avhengige av dem. BREATHE vil forske sånn at vi får bedre modeller for hva som vil skje med havisalgene i fremtiden.

Havisalger lever i isen i de polare områdene. Foto: Karley Campbell

Havisalger er alger som lever i isen rundt polene. De er en viktig del av næringskjeden fordi de er mange og fordi de har fotosyntese. Fotosyntese får dem til å fange CO2 og bruke den til å lage oksygen og mat til andre, det kalles primærproduksjon. Havisalger slipper også ut CO2 og bruker O2 gjennom det som heter respirasjon. Reparasjonsprosessen i algene vet vi ikke noe om enda. Primærproduksjonen og respirasjon går opp eller ned med variasjoner i lys og næring. Det betyr at gassene og maten som algene gir til miljøet endrer områdene der de lever. BREATHE-prosjektet vil finne ut hvordan. Endringene i hva algene gjør og tilgang til næring er ikke godt representert i modeller som kan brukes til å forutsi fremtiden for havisalger. BREATHE vil lage bedre modeller for å forutsi hva som skjer med havisen. De bedre modellene vil ta med algenes tilgang til næring og respirasjonsprosessen. I fremtiden kan vi bedre vite hva som skjer med havisenes alger, gassene de produserer og helsen til polare marine miljøer når det er endringer i klima og miljø.

En havisalge. Foto: Karley Campbell

Prosjektet har fått 8 millioner kroner fra Forskningsrådet og vil pågå frem til 2025. Partnerne i prosjektet er UiT, Polarinstituttet, universitetet i Aarhus, GINR på Grønland, universitetet i Manitoba og universitetet i Calgary.

FISHCOMM skal finne ut om friske celler kan hjelpe skadde celler i fisk

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Et nytt forskningsprosjekt skal finne nye reparasjonssystemer i fisken.

Hvert år dør ca. 20% av oppdrettsfisk av skader fra sykdommer eller av fysiske skader. Når vevet til fisken er skadet settes fiskens reparasjonssystemer i gang for å få det til å gro. Noe ødelagt vev blir fikset og noe dør. Forskerne i FISHCOMM skal finne ut om friske celler bidrar til å hjelpe syke og skadde celler. De tror at friske celler kan overføre bittesmå organeller og mitokondrier til de skadde. Mitokondrier er livsviktige energifabrikker i cellene. De gjør at cellene kan omdanne energi og leve. Forskerne skal finne ut hva som setter i gang at de friske cellene gir mitokondrier til de skadde og hvordan de gjør det. De tror at infeksjoner og nanoplast er noe av det som kan stresse cellene så de blir dysfunksjonelle. De tror også at da hjelper friske celler med nødhjelp, som å sende over mitokondrier.

To hudceller fra laks. Mitokondrier i den ene cellen er farget med lilla fargestoff, mens de i den andre er farget med turkis fargestoff. Forskerne i FISHCOMM har funnet celler med begge mitokondriefarger i en celle, noe som tyder på overføring av mitokondrier fra den ene cella til den andre. Foto: Svartaas, Kjølstad, Wolfson, Dalmo.

Kunnskapen fra prosjektet vil øke forståelsen av mekanismene som er med å reparere syke celler. Økt kunnskap vil også øke velferden for dyrene i havbruket på sikt.

Prosjektet har fått 12 millioner av Forskningsrådet og skal pågå ut 2024. Partnere i prosjektet er UiT, Shanxi Universitet og Westminster Universitet.

Different paths to immune protection in humans and fish

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Written by Agata Teresa Wyrozemska, doctoral research fellow at Fish Immunology and Vaccinology.

The interaction between bacteria, viruses and the organisms they try to infect is a never-ending race. The human body can defend itself against most unwanted pathogens (harmful bacteria and viruses), using the resources of innate and adaptive immunity. Innate immunity is the first line of defence and includes physical barriers, such as the skin and mucosal membranes lining the digestive tract, respiratory tract, etc. Natural reflexes like sneezing, coughing, and vomiting support the clearing of pathogens. The complement proteins and acute-phase proteins are also involved. In addition, some cells send signals in form of, for example cytokines, which trigger the innate and adaptive immune processes. The adaptive immune response develops through direct contact with pathogens; its mechanisms are triggered after the innate immunity and take time to develop. Adaptive immunity involves various specialized cells and molecules, including Major Histocompatibility complexes (MCH). There are different types of MHC molecules but their general function is to help the immune system recognize foreign substances and distinguish them from the self.

Do fish have the same capacity to combat infection as humans?

Anglerfish female with attached male. Copyright © 2020 Swann et. al.

Fish are the most numerous and diverse group of vertebrates, with nearly 21,000 species, more than all other types of vertebrates combined. Would it be logical, if such a large and diverse group followed only one immune defence strategy? Probably no, as in many other aspects of biology, this one too does not follow a simple scheme. Let us focus on bony fish, which anglers and fish-enthusiasts shall be well acquainted with, like cod and salmon. To spice things up, we will throw anglerfish into the mix. Anglerfish males, as a part of reproductive strategy, bite into the female and fuse with her. They form an intricate type of transplant. What is even more interesting, many males can fuse with one female. These seams counterintuitive, because in human transplants, the tissue of the donor must be compatible with the tissue of the recipient or the immune system will reject it. Imagine having multiple organs transplanted from random people. How is it possible that the fused male body is not rejected? This is dictated by a loss of key capabilities that characterize classical adaptive immunity in jawed vertebrates in the Anglerfish (Swann et al., 2020).In a nutshell, their ability to recognizing self from non-self is impaired. On the other hand, there is cod, which has lost one type of the MHC molecules in course of evolution. One may speculate that this loss has been compensated by a massive expansion of the other type of MCH molecules. (Star et al., 2011)

The challenges of fish vaccines

Atlantic salmon. “File:Salmo salar-Atlantic Salmon-Atlanterhavsparken Norway.JPG” by Hans-Petter Fjeld is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5

Anglerfish is a curiosity, and while cod is more commonly known, it is  salmon that is the most popular in Norway. It is well-liked and often lands on our plates. Because of the high demand for salmon fillets, the fish has to be farmed. Thousands of fish are kept in large nets in sheltered waters such as fjords or bays. In dense populations, diseases spread fast. As we see with the Covid-19 outbreak, the major measure to prevent the spread of the virus is social distancing. Social distancing in fish farms is not possible. The most common measure to prevent  diseases among farmed fish, which drive economic losses, is vaccination. Pathogens causing diseases in salmon have been thoroughly examined. Numerous vaccines are available, but there is still room for improvement. It is important to thoroughly examine and understand the salmonid immune systems to create more effective vaccines. Salmon shares many immune features with humans. For instance presence of specific cells, like white blood cells, and immunity-related internal organs. However, there are some differences in their structures and functions as well. Salmon, like other bony fishes, does not have bone marrow. Fish also rely more on the innate immunity. The adaptive response appears later in course of infection and is less sophisticated than in humans. These differences are interesting and important. We at the Fish Immunology and Vaccinology group have a focus on exploring salmon’s immune system and contribute to expand the general knowledge and the formulation of new vaccines. More information about the group can be found here.

Article “The genome sequence of Atlantic cod reveals a unique immune system” by Star et. al. 2011. 

Article “The immunogenetics of sexual parasitism” by Swann et. al. 2020.

MOSAiC: An inside look at the largest Arctic expedition in history

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Written by postdoctoral fellow Jessie Gardner, AMB.

MOSAiC was the largest ever expedition to the Arctic, with one purpose: to improve our understanding of climate change.Dr Jessie Gardner, from the Department of Arctic and Marine Biology (UiT), was on board during the summer and shares her insights from this exceptional scientific campaign.

Unravelling the mysteries of the Central Arctic Ocean

In 2019 the German research icebreaker, Polarstern, set sail from Tromsø bound for the Central Arctic Ocean, the epicentre of climate change. Once there, the ship allowed itself to become trapped in the ice for a year, drifting alongside an ice floe with the speed and direction of the winds and currents alone. The idea follows that of the Norwegian researcher and explorer Fridtjof Nansen, who set sail on the first ever drift expedition with his wooden sailing ship Fram 127 years ago. The Polarstern was laden with state-of-the-art scientific equipment. Throughout the year, 442 experts from 70 institutions in 20 different countries took part in the field campaign, which was supported by six other ships, several aircraft and hundreds of others on land.

The Polarstern reached the northern Laptev Sea by mid-October 2019, located a suitable ice floe and set up a small floating city of scientific instruments in time for the polar night. With temperatures plummeting to -42°C and fierce winds transforming the ice around them, researchers battled to sample the floe in the darkness. Ultimately, they succeeded, giving us a rare glimpse into the central Arctic Ocean environment during the winter while the sea ice thickened beneath their feet.

The Russian icebreaker Kapitan Dranitsyn alongside the Polarstern during the wintertime in the central Arctic Ocean. Photo: Esther Horvath.

Research expeditions into the central Arctic Ocean have traditionally be fraught with problems and MOSAiC was no exception. Some of them were predictable and had been considered during the decade of planning, such as the Russian icebreaker Kapitan Dranitsyn being much delayed by the strength of the winter ice pack. Other issues were completely unforeseen, like the declaration of a pandemic around the world- just as the spring rotation of participants, crew and re-supplies was planned.

It was this rotation that I was scheduled to be part of part of “Team ECO” and the HAVOC project (Ridges – Safe HAVens for ice-associated Flora and Fauna in a Seasonally ice-covered Arctic Ocean). HAVOC is the largest Norwegian project to participate in MOSAiC, led by the Norwegian Polar Institute and funded by the Research Council of Norway. HAVOC aims to investigate sea ice ridges and their role in the Arctic sea-ice system. However, there were moments where it seemed like the MOSAiC field campaign might have been abandoned completely…

How to continue research during a global pandemic

The first hint of the seriousness of coronavirus came after I had attended a polar bear protection training course at the beginning of March in Germany. We were all tested for corona as a precaution, and one of the participants tested positive! I received the news while making a pit stop in the U.K. and immediately went into 2 weeks of quarantine. During those 2 weeks, coronavirus shifted from being a distant issue to a severe threat around the world. Straight after, countries went into lockdown, borders closed and plans for the Spring personnel exchange from Svalbard to the Polarstern were abandoned.

The MOSAiC coordinators, led by the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), worked tirelessly to find an alternative despite airports, military facilities and seaports worldwide shutting down. First, we gained special permission to travel to Germany, underwent testing and then quarantined in isolation for two weeks. After I boarded the research vessel Maria S Merian and spent another two weeks sailing to Svalbard, sleeping in a modified container chained to her deck. The Polarstern had to leave the camp and floe temporarily for the personnel exchange. Unfortunately, this was at the cost of capturing the crucial time when the ice begins to melt, but this is a small price to pay compared to abandoning the expedition altogether.

I could hardly believe it when we finally reached the floe. Photos of sea ice from above makes it seem like a vast expanse of white, flat nothingness but actually this landscape is a diverse and beautiful- littered with tall ice blocks, jagged ridges, leads, cracks and melt ponds which change before your eyes. Now, we could finally get stuck into the science!

Home sweet home! Extra accommodation was needed on the Maria S Merian so many of us slept in converted containers chained to the deck. Photo: Jessie Gardner.

Going with the “floe”

Team ECO collected thousands of samples and measured a diverse suite of ecological and biogeochemical properties from snow, ice, and seawater. With the Polarstern as our base, we built onto the time series capturing the variability of the Arctic system. The dynamic nature of the Arctic and how fast the world around you can transform was something that really struck me. There were new cracks opening and closing throughout the floe, as well as melt ponds and streams forming and draining which we would have to jump over or wade through on the way to collect the samples. These events would be accompanied with a cascade of processes and pulses of life within the associated ecosystem. We were only able to capture these through intensive sampling bouts, working on the ice for 24 hours straight, powered by copious amounts of coffee and gummy bears.

You had to be constantly vigilant, since below us was thousands of meters of seawater, and a polar bear could emerge from the sea ice rubble any time! We were lucky during our time on the floe in that we experienced long periods of calm weather with perpetual bright sunshine. Occasionally there were some very foggy days where it was too unsafe to work on the ice due to poor visibility hindering polar bear guarding.

Team ECO during Leg 4 of MOSAiC. Left to right: Celia Gelfman, Allison Fong, Jessie Gardner, Giulia Castellani, Oliver Müller, John Paul Balmonte and Katyanne Shoemaker. Photo: Lianna Nixon.

Breaking boundaries: working together for a common goal

The name MOSAiC (Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate) reflects the complexity and diversity of the science during the expedition. The MOSAiC field campaign provided an unparalleled opportunity to simultaneously observe and measure the temporal evolution of a number of co-varying Arctic climate system variables from the central Arctic atmosphere, ocean, and ice. With this mindset I was amazed how much more we were able to achieve by working together. For example, it would have been impossible to have collected the number of samples for the HAVOC project that we managed, without others volunteering their precious free time to help. Working across these disciplines and breaking down the boundaries between traditional subjects will give new perspectives on the central Arctic, and it is here that ground-breaking discoveries could be made.

Participants from 70 institutions in 20 different countries took part in the field campaign where everyone worked towards a common goal. Photo: Jessie Gardner.

The expedition has ended, but the research is only just beginning

While the field campaign has ended, MOSAiC is by no means over. Samples are now being shipped to various institutions around the world to be analysed. These, alongside the suite of measurements taken by other teams will likely take the scientific community over a decade to analyse the data collected on MOSAiC. Through virtual meetings we have kept the cross-cutting discussions alive and we already have ideas of combining data and theories in unique and exciting ways. These data and observations will be fundamental to improve our understanding of climate change, and help inform pressing political decisions on climate protection.

On its return in October 2020 the Polarstern offloaded thousands of samples which are being shipped around the world for further analysis. Photo: Jessie Gardner.

 

Can oil and gas companies be a driver for a clean future? A case from petroleum industry

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Written by PhDstudent Tahrir Jaber, REIS research group, Handelshøgskolen ved UiT.

Reflecting the call made by the United Nation to solve our current climate challenges and reduce our carbon emissions, there is a strong need for countries to improve their environmental standards. Norway was among the first countries who welcomed Paris Agreement and ensured its commitment to the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals. This made for significant changes regarding environmental policy, where renewable energy has been introduced as an alternative clean source of energy and is promoted as a climate change adaptation.

Foto: SURASAK SUWANMAKE /mostphotos.com

How has Equinor, a state-owned oil and gas company, adapted to meet the clean shift?

Equinor (formerly Statoil) is mostly owned by the Norwegian government who committed itself to a clean shift at all levels of society. This forced Statoil as an oil and gas company to reshape its strategy and invest heavily in clean energy activities to becoming a mixed-energy company. However, this shift is considered critical because the petroleum activities are crucial for the Norway’s economic growth and for funding the Norwegian welfare state. Also, investing in new clean activities requires Equinor to enhance its capabilities, knowledge and competences outside their boundaries.

Oil and gas companies in transition are required to include cultural and technological changes. Therefore, I found it interesting to understand why Equinor introduced new clean activities to the company and how people in Equinor accept and manage this clean shift. However, in order to answer those questions, I intended to collect my data through interviews and survey. This enabled me as a researcher to enrich the evidence and answer my questions more deeply.

The results show that Equinor’s owner (Norwegian state), top management team, board of directors and top leader play the most essential role in reshaping the company’s strategy in order to take a step towards a new clean shift. However, employees play an important role in strengthening this clean shift. This shows that employees understand the importance of the clean shift, accept it and are interested to develop new clean projects and introduce it to the management team.

Governments and policymakers play the most important role towards a sustainable future

This case shows us, first, the important role government plays in establishing environmental regulations that force companies to change and work to reduce their own carbon emissions. Second, it shed the light on the manager’s moral role in reshaping the company’s strategy by adopting new sustainable projects. Third, the Equinor case shows that its employees are invited to introduce any clean projects to the top management team. By this, employees will have a personal stake in the company and its success, create an opportunity for employees to share ideas, find that their contributions are valued and this enables them to contribute more.

To conclude, I believe that governments and policymakers play the most important role in achieving a sustainable future. Countries should commit to work towards reducing our emissions and have to take action in order to force companies and societies to achieve this goal. Therefore, it is extremely important for policymakers to establish new regulations and incentives that motivate companies to reduce their emissions and reward companies who intend to adopt clean activities.