The pulse of the Arctic

A wealth of data shows which massive changes the Arctic is now experiencing due to climate change. Yet much of that data isn’t easily accessible for the people living there or isn’t tailored to their needs. Accordingly, in the project Arctic PASSION we’re working with more than 30 international partners to form a comprehensive environmental observation system that is better coordinated and delivers useful information for those living in the Arctic, the scientific community, and political decision-makers in the region. 

In August 2016, the town Point Lay in Alaska lost its nearby lake. Due to thawing permafrost soils, the lake had steadily lost stability and ultimately drained entirely into the Kokolik River. This left the local populace with a major problem: they had always drawn their drinking water from the lake and now urgently needed an alternative.

This is just one example of the massive environmental changes affecting people living in the Arctic. In many places, coasts, rivers and the entire frozen ground are rapidly changing. To help find timely responses to these dangerous and far-reaching changes, we developed the Arctic Landscape Explorer (ALEX) – an online platform that uses interactive maps to show in which regions the landscape is changing and how, where the hotspots are, and what can be expected in the future.

As part of Arctic PASSION, additional vital information services will be developed. For example, remote sensing data and local observations could be used to create a forecasting system for air pollution, a platform for preventing, forecasting and combating wildfires, or a service that could better estimate the risks for ice-faring ships. 

In this regard, we also work together with indigenous groups. In this way, we hope to help ensure that their needs and their extensive knowledge of the Arctic regions are reflected in the observation system, and ultimately in decision-making processes. At the same time, we want to work with them to make scientific data useful for the populace.