The famous German research ship, Polarstern (Pole Star in German) left port in Reykjavik last week to research the Arctic Ocean. The ship’s scientists are documenting the changes occurring in the Arctic due to climate change. The developments could have a great influence on biodiversity around Iceland, Visir.is reports.
The ship is the property of the German Ministry of Education, but hundreds of scientists from many different countries have carried out research onboard the ship over its 26-year service to-date.
“This is now our 23rd research trip to the High North,” said Uwe Pahl, the captain of Polarstern. The ship arrived in Reykjavik from eastern Greenland and will now continue its long journey northward.
Interest in the Arctic has increased steadily over recent years, as more people accept and try to understand climate change. The melting of Arctic ice could, among other things, have a big effect on natural resource utilisation and shipping in the area. “Nearly every country now shows interest in developments in the Arctic region,” says Pahl.
It looks highly likely that this year will see less polar ice than in 2005, the current record-holding year. “We lost a lot of ice area in 2007,” says Gerhard Kattner, chief scientist on Polarstern. “There are now scientists who predict that the Arctic will be completely free of summer ice by 2020. When ice melts, it no longer reflects the sun, which instead goes into heating the dark water further. That then speeds up the melting of the remaining ice.”
While scientists try to find out what effects the melting of polar ice will have on high latitude ecosystems and the planet at large, other people are waiting to exploit the new shipping lanes and natural resources the retreating ice opens up.
Scientists on Polarstern have, among other things, been researching the effects of climate change on ocean currents. Kattner says that the North Atlantic Gulf Stream is in danger of shutting down or changing course, which could lead to a dramatic cooling of Northern Europe. However, he emphasises that it will probably take a long time for these changes to happen.
Migration and changes in the natural resources of the sea are already taking place, however. “You already have new species of fish around Iceland,” says Kattner, taking the recent emergence of mackerel in Icelandic waters as an example. “At the same time, other species are going further and further north.”
One Response to “Stories from the north: science at the pole”
Trackbacks/Pingbacks
[...] Stories from the north: science at the pole [...]