The analysis of long-term ecological patterns and changes is a further focus of AWI’s LTO activities and long-term data sets exist for almost every geographic region in which AWI is active and parameters include everything from bacterial metabolism to fish. These collection and analysis methods are equally diverse ranging from manual counts and measurements to high frequency sensor deployments and molecular methods. The most extensive data resources are available in our North Sea observatory. Further important time series are operated in the arctic observatory Hausgarten.

Our time series deliver urgently needed baseline for the assessment of future consequences of climate change for marine ecosystems and help to understand fundamental ecosystem processes sometimes in very remote and little studied geographic regions. All our time series are well connected and networked in a large number of international projects and initiatives including ICES, SCOR, OSPAR and LTER