News

The Arctic sea-ice extent is the lowest it’s ever been in July since the beginning of satellite observation. The sea-ice retreat is especially pronounced off the Siberian coast, as a result of which the Northeast Passage (also referred to as the Northern Sea Route) was ice-free by mid-July. Virtually from the outset, the year 2020 promised to be an anomalous one in terms of both ice thickness and ice drift. In addition, in June there was a cell of warm air that produced extremely high temperatures in Siberia and seriously impacted the sea-ice cover: in…

Researchers of the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, together with the Bremerhaven Zoo have developed a special exhibition on the reintroduction of the European oyster (Ostrea edulis) into the North Sea. On display are living European oysters in an aquarium, a detailed model of an oyster reef and its inhabitants as well as background information on the ecological importance of the species in the exhibition.

What factors influence the spread of invasive animal species in our oceans? This question was the focus for a team of experts from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), Bangor University (Wales, UK), and the University of Greifswald’s Zoological Institute and Museum in the context of the DFG-sponsored Research Training Group 2010 RESPONSE (Biological Responses to Novel and Changing Environments). The results of their study have just been released in the journal “Ecography”.

In a new laboratory study, experts from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) investigated how many microplastic particles would be absorbed in the muscle tissue of young European sea bass after being given feed with extremely high microplastic particle content for a period of four months. At least with regard to this particular food fish, their findings are good news: only an extremely small percentage of the plastic particles ingested found their way into the fish fillets; the majority were excreted. The…

Ten scholars from just as many countries officially end the seventh year of the Nippon Foundation POGO Centre of Excellence at the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) on Helgoland on 15 July. Thus, a total number of 70 scholars have successfully been trained and built up a trusting and sustainable network of future marine researchers in key positions.

40 years of research in the Arctic, Antarctic and in coastal regions: on 15 July, the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) celebrates its 40th anniversary. With its innovative science and excellent research infrastructure, the AWI has become a global leader and internationally recognised centre for climate research in the two polar regions and the world’s oceans.

The Helmholtz Climate Initiative has completely revised its website. It now offers articles, background information, fact sheets and much more on the current state of climate research. AWI researchers can also be reached via the new expert placement service. Learn more

The AWIPEV station team sends midsummer greetings from Ny-Ålesund. The summer solstice is celebrated in the science village at 79 degrees north annually. More information about the station.

The New Siberian Islands were the birthplace of the MOSAiC floe: the sea ice in which the research vessel Polarstern is now drifting through the Arctic was formed off the coast of the archipelago, which separates the East Siberian Sea and the Laptev Sea to the north of Siberia, in December 2018. Sediments, and even small pebbles and bivalves, were incorporated into the ice during the freezing process, which the on-going melting process has brought to light on the surface of the MOSAiC floe. This is an increasingly rare phenomenon as nowadays most of the…

“A library means thinking, learning, fantasising, being safe - and above all, being surrounded by knowledge,” explains Prof. Dr Karen Wiltshire, Deputy Director of the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), in her speech at the opening of the Rosenthal Reading Room at the AWI Wadden Sea Station Sylt. She thanked Prof. Dr Harald Rosenthal from the bottom of her heart, who has now handed over almost a third of his private library to the research station: 55 linear metres of specialist literature.