News

Since the Antarctic Treaty entered into force in 1961, representatives of the participating nations have met regularly for the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM). The 44th ATCM, from 23 May till 2 June 2022, is being hosted by Germany in Berlin. Matters on the agenda include topical questions relating to Antarctica and further developments on the coldest continent on our planet. The Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) presents the exhibition "Experience Antarctica" at ATCM. This shows the delegates of…

The Salon Sophie Charlotte 2022 will take place on May 21 from 6 pm in Berlin under the motto "still - Life is Life". At 7 pm, AWI director Antje Boetius and Alexander Eisenach will discuss the role of art, science and society in the context of the climate crisis as part of the program item "Fragile Life". Further information and the registration form for Salon Sophie Charlotte 2022.

The European Maritime Day 2022 will take place on May 19 and 20 in Ravenna, Italy. AWI scientist Gesche Krause will moderate the "Ocean Literacy EU4Ocean Summit - Plenary session 1", which will include two panel discussions on ocean and climate, and food from the ocean. The event will be broadcast online.

As part of the Year of Science, the Cluster Conference will be held in Berlin on May 20 and 21 from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., with AWI Director Antje Boetius participating as a member of the Science Panel. Citizens have submitted a total of 13,000 questions to science. At the cluster conference, these will now be bundled and discussed by the Citizen and Science Panel.

Prof Antje Boetius, Director of the Alfred Wegener Institute: “We were extremely pleased and relieved to pick up on the signals from the political community that the Budget Committee of the German Bundestag has opted to provide funding for the procurement of the Polarstern II. Thanks to this wonderful news from the Adjustment Session on the Federal Budget for 2022, we have come a major step closer to acquiring a modern, high-performance and sustainable successor to our research icebreaker Polarstern." 

The idea of growing sargassum in huge algae farms is one of five projects that the Federal Agency for Disruptive Innovation is funding in the coming year. The aim is to find new solutions that make the long-term storage of large amounts of CO2 sustainable and economical.

AWI Director Antje Boetius will participate in a panel discussion on "What kind of science architecture is required to deliver relevant science to policy?" on May 12, starting at 3:10 pm. The panel discussion is organized by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in cooperation with UNESCO as part of the Ocean Decade. The event will be streamed live. Further information on the Ocean Decade Laboratory.

AWI director Antje Boetius will participate in a scientific seminar in Monaco on May 11, starting at 2:30 pm. The title: "Northbound - The North Sea and the Arctic Ocean: threats and solutions. Antje Boetius will give a keynote speach at the event. The seminar is organized by the Monegasque "Institut oceanographique" and Prince Albert of Monaco. The seminar will be streamed live.

According to estimates, by 2040 the level of plastic pollution could reach 80 million metric tons per year. Plastic particles have now been detected in virtually all spheres of the environment, e.g. in water bodies, the soil and the air. Via ocean currents and rivers, the tiny plastic particles can even reach the Arctic, Antarctic or ocean depths. A new overview study has now shown that wind, too, can transport these particles great distances – and much faster than water can: in the atmosphere, they can travel from their point of origin to the most…

Presentation of the Carl Weyprecht Medal at the 28th International Polar Meeting of the German Polar Research Society. (DGP) on 2 May 2022 in Potsdam, from right to left: Prof. Dr. Hugues Lantuit (AWI, awardee), Dr. Gerlis Fugmann (IASC, awardee), Dr. Heidemarie Kassens (Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the DGP), Prof. Dr. Cornelia Spiegel (Chair of the DGP), Minister Dr. Manja Schüle (Brandenburg Ministry of Science, Research and Culture, MWFK), apl. Prof. Dr. Bernhard Diekmann (local host of the DGP meeting).