Metrics details Arctic precipitation plays a crucial role in shaping the surface mass balance of Arctic sea ice and has wide-ranging impacts on local climate historical data and climate models indicate a shift from primarily snowfall to a rise in liquid and mixed forms of precipitation This study tried to explain the microphysical characteristics and atmospheric conditions associated with different forms of precipitation and their transitions The phase changes were explained by the vertical precipitation profiles over Ny-Ålesund observed using a Micro Rain Radar (MRR) and vertical atmospheric profiles using the ground-based microwave radiometer (MWR) Atmospheric conditions were also analysed based on ERA5 reanalysis data at different pressure levels it was found that the southerly warm-moist air mass plays a crucial role in the change of precipitation phase and intensity Warm and moist winds at \(\sim\) 2-3 km altitude facilitated high temperature and moisture that helped snow to melt in liquid hourly winds from ERA5 reanalysis indicated upward wind motion was responsible for the formation of graupel The insight gained from this study will be useful to predict the further precipitation trend over the Arctic more accurately ground-based in-situ vertical profilers offer a distinct advantage over satellite measurements by providing more detailed monitoring capabilities in the proximity of the Earth’s surface These studies underscore the need for a deeper understanding of the vertical structure of precipitation and associated atmospheric conditions in the Arctic region Indian research station ’Himadri’ in Ny-Ålesund facilitates in-situ precipitation observation utilizing a Micro Rain Radar (MRR) as a vertical precipitation profiler in conjunction with a disdrometer for ground-level precipitation measurements a ceilometer is employed for monitoring cloud base height while a microwave radiometer (MWR) is utilized for assessing the vertical atmospheric profiles such as temperature and humidity The present study is driven by two primary objectives The initial aim pertains to examining the vertical structure of reflectivity (Ze) in various forms of surface precipitation observed in the Arctic region The second objective focuses on investigating the atmospheric conditions and moisture pathways that are linked to these distinct forms of precipitation and their transition which is critical due to the region’s unique climate sensitivity and the scarcity of reliable observations In-situ observations provide valuable information on vertical structures of precipitation which are crucial for understanding precipitation processes in the Arctic This study advances the scientific knowledge by addressing challenges in distinguishing precipitation types and offering a better understanding of events influenced by atmospheric conditions these observations will enhance the evaluation of satellite-based and reanalysis precipitation datasets and contribute to improved climate and weather models The present study is expected to make a significant contribution in understanding the impacts of climate change feedback on precipitation patterns in the Arctic region In-situ ground-based instruments (a) micro rain radar (MRR) (b) OTT \(\hbox {parsivel}^2\) disdrometer (c) laser ceilometer LIDAR (d) microwave radiometer (MWR) operating at Gruvabadat Atmospheric Laboratory in Ny-Ålesund svalbard (image: Indian-Arctic winter expedition 2023-24) the latest reanalysis from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) were utilized for various pressure levels (1000-225 hPa) and the spatiotemporal distribution within the region of \(0-60^{o}\) E and \(60-90 ^{o}\) N Atmospheric conditions such as temperature and relative humidity were analysed from the ERA5 dataset Ground-based instruments were used for in-situ observation and are summarised next a 200 W dish heating system has been installed it’s important to note that they have certain limitations particularly in windy conditions and when dealing with closely spaced precipitation particles This instrument has been in operation since 2018 at GAL The instrument is in operation since spring 2015 The radiometer observes within an inverted cone featuring a 2-3 degree beamwidth at 51-59 GHz and a 5-6 degree beamwidth at 22-30 GHz The radiometric profiler also includes zenith infrared sensors and surface temperature It continuously measures temperature and humidity profiles up to 10 km with high vertical resolution that decreases with altitude (ranging from 0.05 km to 0.5 km with 58 range gates) Here vertical atmospheric profiles used up to 5 km heights for 2018 and 10 km for the year 2020 case studies with a temporal resolution of 1-5 minutes This method incorporates signal and noise processing techniques featuring a dynamic de-aliasing routine that allows to make observations even when the nyquist velocity range is exceeded it includes noise removal based on identifying the most prominent peak IMProToo processes the raw file from MRR and produces the output particularly well suited for snow studies equivalent reflectivity factor (Ze) and fall velocity (W) from the IMProToo processed file used in this study The contour frequency by altitude diagram (CFAD) of these parameters is used to explain the precipitation microphysical evolution with different altitude levels Ceilometer data for CBH were averaged for 1 minute temporal resolution from 6 second temporal resolution temperature and moisture advection at the 850 hPa level Based on the temperature and moisture vertical profiles over the study location moisture pathways were effectively analyzed using the spatio-temporal distribution of temperature moisture and winds at different pressure levels for each event Below are the equations used to calculate the advection of temperature and moisture while divergence data were obtained directly from ERA5 \(u_{\text {wind}}\) and \(v_{wind}\) represent the temperature u and v components of horizontal winds respectively with 5th polynomial fitting for rain (RA) from \(\hbox {parsivel}^2\) disdrometer during 2018-21 To understand the microphysics and atmospheric conditions associated with different forms of Arctic precipitation three key representative events were selected to closely examine the Arctic precipitation Time series of vertical profiles: (a) BSC (c) fall velocity (W) observed by ceilometer and MRR Ground observations include (d) precipitation intensity from the disdrometer showing transitions from snow (SN red) and vice versa; (e) 2m temperature (blue dashed) and relative humidity (red dashed); and (f) mean wind speed (blue dashed) and wind direction (red dashed) during December \(14^{th}\) - \(16^{th}\) 2018 both the temperature and vapour density began to enhance near the surface Time series of (a) reflectivity (Ze) along with corresponding vertical atmospheric sounding from ground-based vertical profiler MWR: (b) temperature (\(^o C\)) Vertical profile of atmospheric conditions based on ERA5 hourly reanalysis data: (f) horizontal wind speed (g) vertical velocity (h) temperature (\(^o C\)) and (j) relative humidity (%) during December \(14^{th}-16^{th}\) Synoptic chart of MSL pressure with 2m level temperature contour line (column \(1^{st}\)) temperature advection at 850 hPa level (column \(2^{nd}\)) moisture advection at 850 hPa level (column \(3^{rd}\)) and divergence at 500 hPa level (column \(4^{th}\)) at four time instants during December \(14^{th}-16^{th}\) Spatio-temporal of atmospheric variable with horizontal wind speed vectors at the 900 hPa pressure level at four time instants during December \(14^{th}-16^{th}\) Normalized (CFAD) for (a-b) reflectivity (Ze) and (c-d) fall velocity (W) for snow and graupel respectively for December \(14^{th}-16^{th}\) The CFAD of reflectivity (Ze) for both types of precipitation, graupel and snow, presented in Figure 8 The majority of precipitation particles in both cases fall within the range of 10-20 dBZ extending to approximately 25 dBZ and exhibiting a broader range of approximately 0-25 dBZ The reflectivity behavior of snow mirrors that of the first case study below 1.5 km where it intensifies as the particles descend towards the ground with minor fluctuations evident around the altitude of 1 km 0-2 \(ms^{-1}\) while the majority of graupel falls above 1 \(ms^{-1}\) This clearly shows that graupel falls faster with a narrow range and high reflectivity compared to SN red) and vice versa; (e) 2m temperature (blue dashed) and relative humidity (red dashed); and (f) mean wind speed (blue dashed) and wind direction (red dashed) for June \(7^{th}\) - \(8^{th}\) The atmospheric conditions in Figure 9(e-f) at ground level show temperature variation from 0 to \(3.5 ^oC\) with the highest temperature recorded during the rainy phase with the highest humidity observed in the rainy period easterly winds near the surface blow at a velocity exceeding 5 \(ms^{-1}\) transitioning to south-easterly then turns to northwesterly winds later in the rain event with reduced speed below 5 \(ms^{-1}\) as well as snow event-2 and (j) relative humidity (%) during June \(7^{th}\) - \(8^{th}\) The vertical profile of atmospheric conditions from the ERA5 hourly reanalysis dataset is also presented in Figure 10(f-j) Consistency between ERA5 and the MWR data is evident particularly at the 800 hPa pressure level where temperatures exceed zero degrees Celsius coinciding with high moisture as specific humidity This mutual confirmation underscores the reliability of both datasets in depicting temperature variations Synoptic conditions during Snow event-1 at time instant A, as shown in Figure 11(A) the surface high-pressure system at the MSL brings cold southeasterly winds with a small negative advection of temperature and moisture at 850 hPa level High pressure system creates divergence at surface level due to increased speed of surface winds leading to a near-surface downward wind motion from 900 hPa with an overall low temperature and moisture from a southeastern flow but temperature still with positive advection leads to reduced rainfall intensity Snow event-2 presented in Figure 11(D) is characterized by a slightly weaker surface low-pressure system that is centered north of Svalbard and allows cold northerly winds to return, with low surface temperatures to sub-freezing levels. At 850 hPa, cold air advection resumes but is weaker compared to Snow event-1, resulting in limited moisture transport. moisture advection at 850 hPa level (column \(3^{rd}\)) and divergence at 500 hPa level (column \(4^{th}\)) at four time instants during June \(7^{th}\)-\(8^{th}\) in rows: (A) June \(7^{th}\) at 08:00 UTC ; (B)June \(7^{th}\) at 20:00 UTC; (C)June \(8^{th}\) on 04:00 UTC; and (D) June \(8^{th}\) at 20:00 UTC Spatio-temporal distribution of atmospheric conditions with horizontal wind speed vectors at the 800 hPa pressure level and (r) relative humidity (%) at four time instants during June \(7^{th}\)-\(8^{th}\) Normalized (CFAD) for (a-c) reflectivity (Ze) and (d-f) fall velocity (W) for snow event-1 Ground observations include (d) precipitation intensity from the disdrometer showing transitions from rain (RA (e) 2m temperature (blue dashed) and relative humidity (red dashed) and (f) mean wind speed (blue dashed) and wind direction (red dashed) for June \(7^{th}\) - \(8^{th}\) These winds gradually shift to southerly directions with reduced speeds during the rain event and dropping to below 5 \(ms^{-1}\) during the transition to snow the winds become more westerly and north-westerly with higher speeds compared to the rainy phase and (j) relative humidity (%) for November \(14^{th}\) - \(16^{th}\) 2020 vertical winds showed downward motion below \(\sim\) 850 hPa and downward motion in the upper atmosphere snow event experience upward motion below 700 hPa and above 700 hPa shows similar downward motion as rain the strong correlation of MWR and ERA5 datasets confirms the reliability of ERA5 data for further use for spatio-temporal distribution of atmospheric parameters moisture advection at 850 hPa level (column \(3^{rd}\)) and divergence at 500 hPa level (column \(4^{th}\)) at four time instants during during November \(14^{th}\)-\(16^{th}\) in rows: (A) November \(14^{th}\) at 00:00 UTC ; (B) November \(15^{th}\) at 00:00 UTC; (C) November \(15^{th}\) at 12:00 UTC and (D) November \(16^{th}\) at 00:00 UTC and (r) relative humidity (%) at four time instants during November \(14^{th}\)-\(16^{th}\) Normalized (CFAD) for (a-b) reflectivity (Ze) and (c-d) fall velocity (W) for snow and graupel respectively for November \(14^{th}\)-\(16^{th}\) This investigation presents three events studies over Ny-Ålesund (\(78.9^{o}\)N \(11.9^{o}\)E) illustrating a range of precipitation forms at the surface and analyzing their vertical and synoptic conditions In-situ ground-based instruments were deployed for precipitation observations with a MRR employed to capture the vertical profile of precipitation and a disdrometer used for measuring precipitation at the surface A lidar ceilometer was used to observe cloud base height To investigate the vertical synoptic conditions and the profile was compared with the ERA5 reanalysis data profile ERA5 data was further utilized to analyze spatio-temporal distribution The analysis found that snow was the most dominant precipitation type followed by rain and mixed-phase precipitation The physical processes of the events are discussed here The subsequent return to snowfall was marked with the shift of low-pressure system to the northeast of Svalbard This results in reduction in temperature and moisture that results in low intensity precipitation narrower reflectivity range compared to snow This event highlights the presence of mixed-phase cloud over the Svalbard A study also reported the presence of mixed-phase clouds over Svalbard through out the year with an average occurrence of 55% This is higher than the average occurrence over Arctic which is 30% in winter and 50% rest of the year It was found that mixed-phase clouds are especially located below 3 km This is consistent with the observation of present study where mixed-phase clouds was found between 1-3 km observed from November \(14^{th}\) to \(16^{th}\) provides a contrasting scenario to the summer event in terms of synoptic conditions and microphysical processes The event began with rainfall and transitioned to snow over a 52\(-hour\) period a low-pressure system located to the west of Svalbard that facilitates a southwesterly flow transporting warm and moist air over the location This warm-moist advection led to temperatures rise above freezing level Enhanced liquid density during the rain phase indicates the melting layer between \(\sim\)2-3 km As the low-pressure system moved north of Svalbard the surface wind shifted to a northwesterly direction This cold air reduced the temperature profile significantly which led to the transition from rain to snow The MRR profile indicates that during the rain event with values above 25 dBZ predominantly observed below 3 km lower than the summer event the reflectivity profile is mainly confined below 3 km Fall velocity profile of both snow and rain indicates the upward motion of droplets The present study highlights the role of microphysical and dynamical processes that result in different forms of precipitation over Ny-Ålesund in the Arctic the present study highlights the following salient points based on the event studied: which could be useful to differentiate the type of precipitation from remote sensing data The melting layer/ bright band is formed between \(\sim\) 2-3 km above the ground level indicating the phase change in that region The vertical evolution of snow was found to be uniform as compared to rain where reflectivity and fall velocity increase toward the surface The collision of the supercooled water with ice crystals via the riming process within mixed-phased cloud leads to the formation of graupel The upward motion was found to be a significant factor in the process The graupel was found to be associated with higher fall velocity and narrower reflectivity range as compared to snow The transition between snow and rain/graupel is mostly influenced by tropospheric conditions more than surface temperature it is observed that Northwesterly and Northeasterly cold moist winds favor snowfall whereas the poleward warm-moist air masses promote rainfall/ graupel at the study location This study also highlights the microphysical evolution of various precipitation types across different altitudes further in-depth research is required to generalize these findings for Arctic precipitation This knowledge is essential for improving quantitative precipitation estimation from both space-borne and ground-based radars which will be crucial for developing numerical weather prediction (NWP) models for more accurate forecasting The global ERA5 reanalysis datasets and surface-level meteorological data from the Norwegian Polar Institute used in this study are freely available at https://cds.climate.copernicus.eu/ and https://seklima.met.no/ The in-situ observed precipitation and synoptic datasets are available upon request from the corresponding author Climate change 2007-the physical science basis: Working group I contribution 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Flow fields of graupel falling in air. Atmospheric Research 124, 158–169. 0169-8095. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169809513000148 (2013) The formation of small hail and snow pellets Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 22 New polarimetric radar algorithm for melting-layer detection and determination of its height Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 39 Brightband identification based on vertical profiles of reflectivity from the WSR-88D Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 25 Radar observations and simulation of the melting layer of precipitation Structure of the melting layer in mesoscale convective system stratiform precipitation Arctic mixed-phase cloud properties derived from surface-based sensors at SHEBA Variability of mixed-phase clouds in the Arctic with a focus on the Svalbard region: a study based on spaceborne active remote sensing Atmospheric rivers and associated precipitation patterns during the ACLOUD and PASCAL campaigns near Svalbard (May-June 2017): case studies using observations Circulation Specific Precipitation Patterns over Svalbard and Projected Future Changes Download references The authors acknowledge the Ministry of Earth Sciences and the Director of ESSO - NCPOR for their valuable support throughout this study First author (LS) is thankful to CSIR for the fellowship One of the authors (SD) acknowledges the financial support provided by SERB (Grant: CRG/2022/006986) and MoES (MoES/16/4/2021-RDESS/NARM-4) The authors are also thankful to ECMWF for providing ERA5 datasets and Norway Norsk Klimaservicesenter (met.no) for surface observation at Ny-Ålesund The authors thank two anonymous reviewers and the editor for their valuable comments National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-85833-2 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science The information on this page is intended for journalists If you click NO you will come back to Mynewsdesk.com next year's summer program features an extensive network of 344 routes to 128 destinations the new routes include direct flights to Copenhagen complementing our existing connections across Europe and Latvia to exciting destinations across Europe "The summer holidays are something everyone looks forward to and we’re thrilled to offer new and exciting destinations we are introducing direct routes to vibrant European cities As the summer months are a busy travel period we encourage customers to plan and book their holidays early to secure seats," says Magnus Thome Maursund Norwegian currently operates 21 routes from the UK to 15 destinations in five countries providing a wide range of options for travelers Tickets for the new routes are available from 6 December Norwegian’s summer program 2025 features 344 routes distributed across the Nordic countries: (Note: Some routes are counted in multiple countries as they connect two Nordic markets.) Norwegian operates both summer and winter programs The summer program runs from late March through October while the current winter program includes 170 routes to 76 destinations About NorwegianThe Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company The company has over 8,200 employees and owns two of the prominent airlines in the Nordics: Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe’s Flyveselskap aiming to facilitate seamless air travel across the two airline’s networks The Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company the largest Norwegian airline with around 4,700 employees operates an extensive route network connecting Nordic countries to key European destinations Norwegian carried over 22,6 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 86 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft Mainly operating the short-runway airports in rural Norway Widerøe operates several state contract routes (PSO routes) in addition to its own commercial network the airline had 3.8 million passengers and a fleet 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the road’s condition and the impact on the local area The decision will take effect from February 1 but that ban has now been extended to all heavy traffic while private car users are to be “discouraged” from driving along the narrow road between Aksla Stadium and Fjellstua three technical studies of the road have been carried out: Driving pattern and road width the municipality has cited structural concerns with the narrow road as the primary reason for the change Officials say large buses have weakened the road’s retaining walls making narrow sections difficult for vehicles to pass safely Fjellstua viewpoint offering breathtaking panoramic views of the city The viewpoint is a favorite among both tourists and locals Visitors can reach Fjellstua via the winding mountain road or by climbing the famous staircase from the town park a rewarding ascent that provides stunning vistas along the way even for those who don't make it all the way to the top Many visitors climb Ålesund's Mount Aksla by the stone staircase The café at the top is a popular spot for refreshments while taking in the scenery making it one of Norway’s most popular cruise ports As the Fjellstua viewpoint features prominently in promotional material about the town many cruise passengers assume tour buses will take in the iconic viewpoint Some tour companies adapted to last year’s ban on the biggest coaches but the new ban on all heavy vehicles poses a fresh challenge up to 200 buses travel the route daily in the peak summer months bringing thousands of visitors to the viewpoint some are private groups or event bookings at Fjellstua’s ‘restaurant with a view.’ The ban will be implemented just days after the announcement “We already have groups booked to visit Fjellstua by bus and this creates major logistical challenges for our business,” explained Støbakk While the iconic climb up Aksla’s 418 steps is a rewarding challenge Many visitors are also surprised to discover that the staircase doesn’t start at the waterfront or cruise terminal but requires a considerable uphill walk just to reach the first step The stone steps up Ålesund's Mount Aksla to the Fjellstua viewpoint are excellent There is growing interest in building a lift or funicular system to provide sustainable access to the viewpoint leaving businesses and tour operators scrambling to find immediate solutions visitors to Ålesund’s famous viewpoint will need to rely on private vehicles those using private vehicles are being “discouraged” from making the trip leaving open the possibility of an outright ban on all road traffic in the future Despite having a population of just 5.7 million spread across a vast land area Norway faces overtourism challenges similar to those in major European destinations like Barcelona and Venice particularly those along the fjords and in cities like Bergen struggle with congestion during peak seasons as record numbers of cruise passengers and independent travelers arrive the influx of visitors has placed enormous pressure on local infrastructure including roads that were not designed to accommodate heavy tourist traffic Fjellstua’s bus ban reflects a growing trend in Norwegian municipalities seeking to manage tourism sustainably while preserving natural and cultural heritage sites while parking rules for motorhomes have been firmed up Following the incident on board the coastal cruise ship "MS Havila Polaris" earlier today the ship will be delayed in its schedule from Ålesund Havila Polaris experienced overheating in the propulsion system on the port side off Ålesund while en route to the Geirangerfjord The ship docked at Stranda under its own power where passengers and part of the crew were evacuated ashore via gangway for safety reasons Havila Polaris has now received temporary sailing permission from DNV and the Norwegian Maritime Authority to sail back to Ålesund Expected arrival at Storneskaia is at 9 p.m Havila Polaris will be delayed in its schedule from Ålesund "We never compromise on safety and would never sail back to Ålesund unless it was safe for passengers and crew," says CEO Bent Martini in Havila Voyages unfortunate that we had an incident on board the crew has handled the situation as well as possible and prevented more significant damage to the ship." Passengers on board will be able to stay on the ship in Ålesund and Havila Voyages will provide more information about the next steps once the extent of the damage is clarified and further plans are made "It is important for us to get a complete overview of the damage and how this affects future operations in cooperation with our suppliers," says Martini "We will take good care of our passengers and do our utmost to ensure they have a good experience in Ålesund tomorrow," he concludes More information about the future operations of Havila Polaris will be provided as soon as it is available Vangstein of Havila Voyages will be available for the media in Ålesund on Wednesday Please contact by phone at +47 93 44 99 54 to schedule an interview Contact Information for Havila Voyages:Media: +47 477 67 400 (Open 24/7)Emergency Phone for Crew Relatives: +47 477 67 305 (Open until 11 p.m CET)Emergency Phone for Passenger Relatives: +47 477 67 910 (Open until 11 p.m Havila Voyages is a Norwegian shipping company that sails the classic coastal voyage between Bergen and Kirkenes with the Norwegian coast's most environmentally friendly ships The four new ships are loaded with one the world's largest battery pack ever installed on passenger ships and can sail for up to four hours without noise or emissions through vulnerable areas The batteries are charged with clean hydropower at shore and when the batteries are low we switch to natural gas which cuts CO2 by around 35 % The hull is specially designed for maximum energy efficiency and excess heat from cooling water and sea used for heating on board On the menu are locally made dishes from local producers We are already exceeding the authorities' requirements for cutting emission and we have set sail with zero emissions as the future target Havila Voyages is part of the Havila Group that dates back to the 1950s bought his first fishing boat in his teens Havila is now a group operating in shipping technology there was an incident with the coastal cruise ship "MS Havila Polaris" off Stranda on its way into the Geirangerfjord All passengers and part of the crew have been safely disembarked ashore at Stranda Havila Voyages regrets to announce that Havila Polaris must cancel the remaining round trip from Ålesund following an incident of overheating on board the ship yesterday In December 2021 Havila Voyages started sailing the most environmentally friendly ships on the Norwegian coast between Bergen and Kirkenes We sail through narrow fjords and on the high seas under the Northern Lights and the midnight sun the Yellow River Station in Ny-Ålesund became China’s first Arctic research presence.  the Yellow River Station is formally hiring the building from Kings Bay the Norwegian state-owned company in charge of running the international science community the two stone lions outside the entrance door has triggered questions about China’s use of symbolic signalling on its Arctic presence.  have to find a practical balance between politicised foreign research at the Norwegian-owned science station simultaneously as keeping tensions low.  The request to remove the symbolic stone lions at the Yellow River Station building is therefore not coming from the Government in Oslo, but is part of a new overall plan by Kings Bay on how to mark the different buildings in Ny-Ålesund with new signs, local newspaper Svalbardposten reports.  Kings Bay is responsible for Svalbard’s largest collection of automatically listed buildings One consequence of the new sign plan will be that the Chinese symbols will have to be removed or moved indoors “The Chinese are our tenants. We trust them to follow our instructions,” says Director of Kings Bay, Lars ole Saugnes to Svalbardposten.  Professor Marc Lanteigne with UiT - Arctic University of Norway in Tromsø is expert on China’s Arctic interests He says to the Barents Observer that the presence of the lions in Ny-Ålesund has long been a concern for Norwegian authorities.   "There had been an unwritten understanding that all of the facilities there needed to focus on scientific endeavours and so there should not be any overt political symbols present on the ground." Professor Lanteigne believes the decision to remove the statues will not likely to be appreciated by Beijing "Chinese scholars have been critical in recent years of what they see as intensified steps by Norway to more centrally regulate scientific activities there including the rule that research should be restricted to the physical sciences This has been viewed in some Chinese research circles as misinterpreting the Svalbard Treaty," Marc Lanteigne says He adds: "The fact that these rules are to applied throughout Ny-Ålesund may blunt some protests but there will likely be the impression in China that this is another example of Norway overstepping and seeking to roll back the activities of the other Treaty signatories." which is the world’s northernmost year-round research community more than 20 research institutions from several countries are present Russia is not present in Ny-Ålesund but runs its own research from Barentsburg If they will team up with Russia is unknown Turkey is together with North Korea the newest signatures to the 1920 Svalbard Treaty Svalbard in particular, but also the entire circumpolar Arctic, is warming nearly four times faster than global average more open waters absorb heat giving an extra push the rising temperatures on top of the planet Published by: The Independent Barents Observer AS About us The Barents Observer follows the Code of Ethics of the Norwegian Press and the document Right and Duties of the Editor We report under full editorial independence and have no external interference Donate to our independent journalism Støtt oss via Vipps: 105 792 - Det betyr mye newstips@thebarentsobserver.com atle@thebarentsobserver.com thomas@thebarentsobserver.com☏ +47-905 73 143 denis@thebarentsobserver.com georgii@thebarentsobserver.com liza.vereykina@thebarentsobserver.com olesia@thebarentsobserver.com Privacy policy Ny-Ålesund in Norway's Arctic is the world's most northerly settlement A team of scientists surrounded by glaciers walruses and arctic foxes call this hostile environment home while they're researching the Arctic's ice "The polar night is always the hardest," explains Marion Maturilli a scientist studying Arctic climate dynamics with the French and German Polar Institutes For more than 50 years, Ny-Ålesund has housed an international community at the top of the world just 1,200km (745 miles) from the North Pole. Remnants of scientific equipment from the mission which mapped the lines of longitude which define our time zones, still stand at Ny-Ålesund. More recently, Nasa used the base for its satellite lasers and measurements of the Earth's electrical field scientists from 10 countries live there to conduct their research Their experiments stretch from space to the mysteries of phytoplankton walrus behaviour and alterations in Arctic cyclones The need to protect the unique polar archipelago resulted in the Svalbard Environmental Protection Act, which was one of the world's first international environmental protection agreements But the impact left on this pristine landscape by the researchers is necessary Maturilli's team records long-term series of temperature and solar radiation measurements at Ny-Ålesund the team at the German station used a weather balloon to raise a radiosonde – a small instrument which measures atmospheric conditions – which has to be carefully operated to prevent icing up in the clouds The results are used to make accurate up-to-date weather forecasts but also document the long-term changes of temperature in the upper air of the region These measurements depend on having precise and accurate reference points made at the station's high latitudes which give the global coverage and even our place in space "It doesn't sound spectacular but our daily measurements have produced reliable data for an international climate reference observing network," says Maturilli I've seen it change too much – Iain RudkinBut to limit the impact of the settlement only around 30 people are permitted live at the research station year-round "We do everything we can from planning to execution to change the Arctic as little as possible but this research is vital" the Arctic Operations Manager for the British Antarctic Survey Efforts to mitigate their own environmental impacts are a high priority according to Geir Gotaas leader of the Norwegian Polar Institute at the base Scientists are careful to collaborate to avoid any duplicated research The teams on the base share data and boat rides to collect Arctic specimens and are planning to transition to electric snowmobiles – although there are challenges "In the field researchers typically cover long distances and bring a lot of heavy equipment and EV snowmobiles aren't up to the task – yet," says Gotaas And, while protecting the rare ecosystem is enshrined in the Svalbard Treaty the carbon footprint must also be limited so the science itself is not derailed "Worsened battery performance in cold conditions and any projects which involve sea or diving activities are very difficult because the logistics use up many resources," she adds "We co-ordinate within the international community of climate researchers each doing a puzzle piece to make sure we optimise activities so there's benefits for all" The site has enabled long-term research in the high Arctic and unique collaboration between countries and disciplines The scientists share equipment – everything from meteorologic balloons to second hand winter clothing The Korean Polar Institute's team is one such example of cross-country collaboration The team used results from a project carried out by a German-Nordic partnership The work led to the Korean team publishing a paper about how Arctic ecosystems operate during the dark Yoo Kyung Lee from the Korean Polar Institute says she also minimises her carbon footprint at the station by freeze-drying her plant samples to transport back to South Korea for further energy-intensive experiments The frozen samples show the multi-generational changes in Svalbard's plant life she monitors changes in the plants – creating DNA markers to distinguish populations and later sequences their genomes so she can study their adaptations to the changing climate In addition the Norwegian and Italian bases are collaborating in the Ice Memory operation collecting cores to preserve these rich records before they disappear one being used for research and the other sent for preservation meaning that future generations of scientists can access high-quality cores to study the environmental conditions of our planet long after glaciers may have disappeared due to global warming glass – and shipped to the Norwegian mainland for recycling The majority of the produce comes from Norwegian wholesale suppliers and is imported from the mainland as there is no agricultural produce in Svalbard Gotaas says they try to keep food waste at a minimum "The most important step is quite simple; only prepare the amount of food needed to feed the number of people in Ny-Ålesund at any given time," he explains Leftovers are typically served as part of lunch the following day and whatever is left of food waste is shipped to the Norwegian mainland for composting and regular waste handling scientists regularly receive spot check visits when their power usage is scrutinised – with use of electronic devices limited to conserve electricity The power station which provides electricity and hot water still runs on diesel although heat exchangers have been installed to extract as much heat and energy as possible from the power generator exhausts such as installing more efficient ventilation systems in the labs switching from regular light bulbs to LED lights having motion sensors to switch off lights automatically and lowering of the temperature in rooms that are not being used The polar night is the hardest – Marion MaturilliResearch instruments themselves are meticulously tracked across this remote landscape – each registered in a Geographic Information System (GIS) layer – or collection of geographic data – with every project's tools mapped and constantly updated The general rule is that all projects should have a start and end date so that instruments no longer active are quickly collected Because of the need to provide environmental data of the highest quality possible Geir says it is in "everyone's interest to keep the local carbon footprint at a minimum to avoid any disturbance to the sensitive measurements" The stations themselves are as vulnerable as the ecosystem which function as both living quarters and laboratories were built as early as 1910 Improving insulation is a step typically taken when renovating the old buildings But since many of the oldest buildings in Ny-Ålesund are protected as cultural heritage there are limits to what changes can be made the scientists focus on improving efficiency and have installed the heat exchangers for this purpose the stations are shifting and tilting with doors no longer fitting their frames and pools of water are rotting their wooden foundations the teams devised an engineering method to move the stations using car jacks to raise and then lower the buildings on new steel girded frames In some cases engineers must drill 50m (164ft) deep into the bedrock and reinforce concrete pillars which have replaced the original wooden supports The emissions from travel it took to report this story were 0kg CO2. The digital emissions from this story are an estimated 1.2g to 3.6g CO2 per page view. Find out more about how we calculated this figure here. the permafrost was so stable that this wasn't necessary but with the changes from global warming over the last decades causing thawing permafrost several of the old buildings have extensive damages as the structural integrity has been compromised Geir says that inserting steel pillars into the bedrock will "prevent damages from occurring and reduce the need for expensive maintenance and reparations" Two or three people can pull the entire building off its foundations simply cut its electricity for half an hour and then reconnect it with none of the ongoing lab research compromised scientists hoping to study the sea ice in the Arctic could research at the station but the presence of sea ice can no longer be guaranteed "Normally now it is too warm and turbulent for the sea ice so we've had to turn down some projects otherwise the scientists could lose their funding," explains Rudkin • An icy plunge: Diving under sea ice for science • The race to study Antarctica before it melts • The astronauts of the underworld Rudkin worries about what will be lost to science [The] mind-blowing scenery gets under your skin and you fall in love with it But I have two small kids and the thought of what world I'm leaving behind for them is always on my mind," Rudkin says "In daily life I meet people who ask me if the Arctic is actually changing," says Rudkin "I wish they could see how much its lost so quickly We always hope our science gets fed into policy so we could still change the future."  For more science, technology, environment and health stories from the BBC, follow us on Facebook and X and Instagram. 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Invented to satiate pregnancy cravings, Dubai chocolate is a rare combination of creativity, flavours and social media success that has broken all industry records. China has been a tenant in Ny-Ålesund for 20 years, and the lions have guarded the entrance just as long. (Photo: Sphinx Public Domain) Norwegian authorities require the lion sculptures that guard the entrance to China's research station in Ny-Ålesund in Svalbard to be removed Les på norsk. two lions have guarded China's research station According to Chinese culture, the fearsome lions signify strength and protection. However, the state company Kings Bay, which owns most of the buildings in Ny-Ålesund, will no longer accept the decoration, writes Svalbardposten. We trust that they will follow our instructions," says Director Lars Ole Saugnes of Kings Bay to the newspaper the company wants the Chinese polar research institute to keep a lower profile and tone down the visual expression at the entrance The Chinese have therefore been asked to remove the lions and a sign reading "Yellow River Station" by the building's entrance The changes are a part of a new sign plan which will apply to all buildings rented by foreigners in Ny-Ålesund who arrived with flags and banners to mark the 20th anniversary of Chinese research in Svalbard Among them was a woman dressed in a military uniform The case had diplomatic repercussions, and according to NRK the Chinese embassy was called in for a meeting with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice have been informed of the new order High North News is not responsible for the content or opinions expressed on external web pages Editor in Chief:Trine Jonassen E-mail High North News Editor/Commentator: Arne O. HolmTel: (+47) 905 29 472 Journalist:Hilde-Gunn Bye Journalist:Astri Edvardsen Translator:Birgitte Annie Molid Martinussen with a population of polar bears shared with Russia As the sea ice retreats farther away from the coast in summer which has started to bring polar bears into more regular contact with communities on Svalbard As part of Polar Bears International’s coexistence efforts, consulting scientist Joanna Sulich, who spends some of her time on the archipelago, has designed a brochure to prepare residents of and visitors to the research community of Ny-Ålesund for the prospect of a polar bear encounter and how the brochure fits into larger coexistence efforts It is basically a community that is a research station It has been evolving throughout history but currently it is a research station that is hosted by the Norwegian Polar Institute and Kings Bay Everybody who lives there eats at the same place in a canteen that also is run by Kings Bay The Norwegian Polar Institute has taken a lead role in the scientific development of Ny-Ålesund and the town also hosts numerous international research facilities from polar institutes from countries like Norway and a lot of people come through from all over the world or they’re accustomed to a time when the town was rarely visited by polar bears Joanna Sulich with other scientists in Ny-Ålesund How long have you been visiting and working there I spent at most five or six months of the year there I worked with polar bears as a consulting scientist for Polar Bears International spending two months in the field every day with just one other person You mentioned just now that Ny-Ålesund traditionally has not seen a lot of polar bears now that some bears on Svalbard are staying ashore all year that the community is starting to see more bears the local population of polar bears is recovering there are possibly more visitations because the lack of sea ice especially in the middle and later parts of the year So it may be a combination of local bears establishing themselves and then sea ice conditions deteriorating as a result of which bears are being forced ashore to look for alternative food sources Tell me about what prompted you to produce the brochure The brochure is just one part of a project to help the community prepare for increased visits from polar bears — and also to help visitors clear language to make sure that everybody arriving in Ny-Ålesund has access to free and extensive information on how to prepare themselves for the possibility of meeting a polar bear The brochure helps people learn about polar bears also guiding visitors further to the content I created for the Polar Bears International website which provides more extensive information on avoiding and handling polar bear encounters Another element is to undergo the training that is given by Kings Bay to all those arriving in Ny-Ålesund and wanting to obtain a rifle rental permit One of the community’s massive challenges is that the population is extremely transient The people who are there may be in town for just a few days or a few weeks It's like starting with children and needing them to mature within an afternoon of training You want them to have a mindset that allows them to work and/or recreate safely in this environment but also adjust their behavior and plans to accommodate polar bears as well Are there other things the community does well with regard to polar bear interactions or that you would like to see it do better One thing that has been a great effort by the community is that there’s a Watchman crew in place – in fact, Polar Bears International honored the team’s efforts with its World Ranger Day Award in 2022 People who are working in different jobs in Ny-Ålesund — as carpenters which responds to all kinds of situations that happen in town from fires to a polar bear near the community What is great is that this team — through their transfer of experience and also their communication with each other — have established what to do when polar bears show up in different areas There have been situations where a bear has been so close that the Watchmen chased it away with flares But there also have been situations where bears were hunting on seal haulouts really near the town the Watchmen observed polar bears for hours on end A patrol like that is a very important step towards coexistence I understand how costly it is in time and energy and how economically costly it is when you have an increased number of bears in proximity It means that a lot of people are watching the bears and not doing the work that they’re supposed to be doing to keep the station going I helped with a brief deterrence training in Ny-Ålesund on the use of hand-held flares provided by Polar Bears International as part of their coexistence efforts Deterrents play an important role in staying safe in areas with polar bears and now Ny-Ålesund includes them in their safety mix Joanna Sulich giving a presentation in Ny-Ålesund with the help of my dad who taught me the right tools Polar Bears International paid for my time in creating the brochure and printing it They also connected me with resources and researchers who could provide their expertise And Kings Bay hosted me and covered my lodging and food I particularly liked one image in the brochure of a half-silhouette of a polar bear appearing from behind a building It’s a nice abstract rendering of a polar bear that’s almost certainly going to be what it’s like: a bear We often get polar bear safety brochures with a nice close-up image of a bear on it the half-silhouette shifts the focus away from the bear and onto the environment Through my experience of fieldwork in Ny-Ålesund and my work with Polar Bears International I saw the need to address the increased polar bear presence in the area I designed a brochure for Ny-Ålesund and now I’m designing one for the Svalbard town of Longyearbyen I care deeply about people and understand how we can wind up in situations where we have these negative encounters with bears And I also really care about the wildlife as well So kind of it's been a natural point of contact on things that I really Freelance writer Kieran Mulvaney is a frequent contributor to Polar Bears International and other subjects appear in publications from National Geographic to Smithsonian Become part of a community committed to protecting polar bears with our free e-news Polar Bears International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization in the U.S.A (EIN: 77-0322706) and a recognized registered charity in Canada (CCR: 862722279 RR0001.) The actions we take today give polar bears a chance at an even better tomorrow has been working on a project since 2002: focusing on visual research of glaciers in Svalbard in the Arctic and documenting their retreat over time This work contrasts current images with archival photos from the Norwegian Polar Institute dating back to the early 1900s Christian boarded Greenpeace ship The Witness to return to revisit some of the glaciers he first captured in 2002 while also documenting new ones for his ongoing project.  “At so many of the glaciers I photographed for this series we saw the same story – ice walls completely gone and glaciers retreating back into nothing They illustrate just how quickly our planet is changing as the climate crisis worsens The Arctic is our climate sentinel – it’s where the climate and ocean crises converge and where the impacts of these crises are seen first and felt most keenly.” In 2002 the documentation of the iconic Blomstrandbreen glacier showed that the glacier had retreated nearly 2 km since 1928 with an accelerated rate of 35 metres lost per year since 1960 and even higher in the past decade only illustrate the terrifying extent to which Arctic glaciers have retreated in the last century The rapid warming of the Arctic has significant global consequences Melting glaciers and ice sheets contribute to rising sea levels while the loss of sea ice exposes a darker ocean that absorbs heat rather than reflecting it leading to widespread changes in weather patterns The climate and ocean crises are deeply intertwined; as the climate crisis intensifies the ocean’s capacity to mitigate its most severe effects and sustain marine ecosystems is being undermined at an unprecedented scale Safeguarding 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030 through a network of ocean sanctuaries Greenpeace is urging governments to ratify the UN Ocean Treaty by June 2025 to initiate the establishment of sanctuaries in the high seas across at least 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030 Add your name to call on leaders to create new ocean sanctuaries and protect our blue planet A firefighter describes the horror of witnessing the Amazon being consumed by wildfires Greenpeace response to the meeting jointly convened by the Secretary-General and President of Brazil “The bonds between Marshall Islands and Greenpeace are very strong and have stood the test of time They say we rescued them from a contaminated Rongelap but the reality is that they rescued themselves - the Marshallese are the strong and brave people who took their future into their own hands and continue to do… Please select which cookies you are willing to store These cookies are required for technical reasons so that you can visit our website and use the functions we offer These cookies are used to recognise you between successive visits and thus provide you with a better experience storing your consent preferences and the last Greenpeace.org website visited We use tracking and analysis tools to ensure continuous optimisation and demand-oriented design of our website These cookies will allow us to collect statistical and anonymised data such as how visitors use our website or which pages are accessed most frequently to ultimately improve Greenpeace.org and provide you with a better experience of our website In addition to the Performance cookies mentioned above we may also place in your browser cookies from third-party services (e.g Facebook or Google) to track the effectiveness of our online marketing strategies and to deliver adverts more relevant to you and your interests These cookies may also be used to serve advertising to you after you have left our site (retargeting cookies) ShareSaveCommentLifestyleTravelA Guide To Norway’s Ålesund For Cruise Ship VisitorsByDavid Nikel David Nikel is a travel writer covering cruising and Scandinavia.Follow AuthorMay 18 02:26pm EDTShareSaveCommentÅlesund's picturesque central waterway is just a few minutes' walk from the main cruise terminal Ålesund is a picturesque Norwegian city renowned for its striking art nouveau architecture—unique in Norway—and its stunning natural setting one that welcomes ever-increasing numbers of people on cruise ships touring the fjords and the Norwegian coastline Ålesund welcomed more than 650,000 visits from cruise ship passengers topping the list ahead of other popular ports like Bergen The city's harbor facilities are well-equipped to accommodate some of the largest cruise ships in the world from the likes of Royal Caribbean and MSC Cruises more than one large cruise ship can be accommodated but if your itinerary doesn't include the fjords take advantage of the sightseeing boat tour to the stunning Hjørundfjord a favorite of European royalty through the ages you don't need to take a pricey excursion to enjoy the best of Ålesund itself The compact city is an excellent place to explore the beauty of Norway independently without straying too far from the cruise port A simple walk around the downtown area is the best way to appreciate the architecture of Ålesund This style flourished after the great fire of 1904 which led to the reconstruction of the city influenced by young local and European architects who preferred the ornate stone buildings and whimsical facades inspired by natural motifs that were popular across Europe at the time Many of Ålesund’s central streets are lined with pastel-colored buildings adorned with intricate floral patterns and detailed reliefs that make it a visual feast regardless of your knowledge of architecture walk along both sides of the central waterway towards the lighthouse Molja fyr and then to the Quality Hotel This route showcases the finest examples of Ålesund’s distinctive architecture itself a prime example of art nouveau design Visitors can join guided walking tours offered by local experts that focus on notable buildings but these are quickly snapped up on cruise days or seek independent options using websites such as Viator or GetYourGuide Your ticket also grants you access to KUBE the art museum located in the former bank building next door or those simply seeking a spectacular cityscape This well-known view of Ålesund in its spectacular natural surroundings is the reward for climbing .. you'll find the base of the 400+ steps leading up to the Aksla viewpoint—a favored spot for capturing Ålesund’s most iconic images The breathtaking panoramic views of the city Sunnmøre Alps and maze of waterways are hard to beat treat yourself to a well-earned reward at the café where you can enjoy ice cream and snacks while soaking in the stunning surroundings Just bear in mind that the steps are steep and there is quite an uphill walk before you even get to the first step Benches and smaller viewpoints are dotted along the stairway offering enjoyable views even if you don’t make it all the way to the top There is no actual railroad service in Ålesund, but a sightseeing road train operates on cruise days the tour includes parts of the downtown area and a 15-minute stop at the Aksla viewpoint for those who don’t want to or can't make the walk The 'city train' is a sightseeing road train in Ålesund Tickets ($30) can be bought from the sales booth at the cruise port departure point There’s lots to see in northern Europe’s largest saltwater aquarium A small penguin colony gifted from Chile is the star attraction At more than $20, entrance isn’t cheap but it’s a worthy use of time if you have children. To make the most of your visit, check the website in advance of your visit for feeding times in the various sections take the short walk to the bus stop Dronning Sonjas Plass to pick up bus line 1 it’s a further 10-15 minute walk to the aquarium a combined ticket including a shuttle bus is available from the sales booth at the cruise port Explore Ålesund by kayak to see the city's striking architecture from the peaceful waters that surround it This vantage point provides views of quaint islands and active harbors combining urban discovery with the calm of sea kayaking for a unique experience Kayak tours are a wonderful option to appreciate Ålesund's architecture from a different ... More perspective. This tour offers numerous opportunities for photography and is led by a guide with extensive local expertise. Regular cruisers will be familiar with the concept of a hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus. Passengers can use the bus as a 70-minute sightseeing tour of the city, or as transport between the major sites. The $40 day ticket is valid whichever method you choose. The route calls at the Aksla viewpoint but also takes in many more of the city’s sights than the road train, including the Atlantic Sea Park and the Sunnmøre open-air museum. However, departures run only every 45 minutes, so you will need to plan carefully to avoid lengthy waits. Tickets can be bought from the sales booth at the cruise port departure point. Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker HomeDestinationsInterestsTop Places to Travel by MonthSearchMenuBest time to go to Norway Huge bonfires are lit to ward off evil witches while Norwegians are getting married for fun during the midnight sun translated as "John's wake," is actually a Christian celebration with pagan origins held during Midsummer Roman Catholics went on pilgrimages on the Midsummer Eve the festival is more secular than religious Norwegians light large bonfires which were believed to increase the lands' fertility as well as scare off witches who went out to gather herbs for poison Girls gather seven different flowers and put them under the pillow in order to see their future husbands in a dream Western Norway has also preserved the tradition of mock weddings which are organized for children and adults and symbolize the birth of new life another occasion for families and friends to gather out for a picnic is the largest bonfire in Norway and is usually set on a man-made island in Ålesund a picturesque art nouveau town on the west coast of the country the adventurous ones come and stack hundreds of wooden pallets in the shape of a spire reaching 40 m into the sky The tower is then burnt on the shortest night (June 23) from the top to the bottom Lots of people enjoy watching it from a safe distance Alesund set a world record for hosting the tallest bonfire The bonfire is usually set up months prior by the locals and lights up at around 9 pm But there's no need to worry if you miss the beginning of the spectacle because the bonfire burns late into the night Bergen holds a magnificent Sankthans celebration in the borough of Laksevåg Local enthusiasts come together to build one of the country's biggest barrel bonfires which consists of hundreds of barrels and requires tremendous effort you'll have a chance to participate in raffles and grab a drink or two from the food stalls The festivities begin at 5 pm and last until midnight The great bonfire burning takes place at 9 pm at the Kirkebukten Bay in Laksevåg The capital of Norway also welcomes you to celebrate the summer solstice on June 23rd with the energetic music festival at the Norwegian Folk Museum Although bonfire burning is not included in the program you'll have a chance to hear some of the best folk and indie music in the region The celebration spans from 2 pm to 10 pm and requires a ticket Children under 17 years old can enter for free Ålesund Kirkebukten Bay Norsk FolkemuseumÅlesundKirkebukten BayNorsk FolkemuseumLast updated: June 14, 2024Authors: Svitlana MysakPeople interested You can do just that now with Lufthansa Group Airlines as the 2025 summer flight schedule is now available for Lufthansa Airlines Swiss International Air Lines and Edelweiss with new intercontinental and European destinations available for booking.  New with Lufthansa Airlines from Frankfurt to: New with Discover Airlines from Frankfurt to: New with Discover Airlines from Munich to: New with Austrian Airlines from Vienna to: New with Swiss International Air Lines from Zurich to: The Lufthansa Group airlines thus offer their guests more than 12,000 weekly connections to over 300 destinations in more than 100 countries via their hubs in Germany There is also good news for all Airbus A380 fans: the world's largest passenger aircraft will again take off from Munich next summer to Boston Royalty from Europe were among the first guests to visit the Norwegian fjords 150 years ago the Norwegian royal family has visited the region regularly loves hiking in the Sunnmøre mountains with their breathtaking fjord views The royal family frequently visits aboard the royal yacht King Harald and Queen Sonja have been cruising the fjords near Ålesund ultimately making their way to the final destination The first influencers arrived already 150 years agoIn addition to the royals in the 1800s and other visitors who share their experiences on social media These early visitors were the first marketers or influencers – “We are certain that both the couple and their guests coming from all over the world will have a lovely fjord cruise when they are sailing from Ålesund to the Geirangerfjord today We send our warm congratulations to the happy couple says Tom Anker Skrede while hoping the attention might inspire new guest to visit Ålesund Geiranger and the fjords in the future.”Contact information: Tom Anker SkredeCEO Destination Ålesund & Sunnmøretom@visitalesund.comTel: +47 90 98 76 98Helen SiverstølPress relations and content,Destination Ålesund & Sunnmørehelen@visitalesund.comTel: +47 93 03 40 27 Fjord Norge AS/Fjord Norway is the official tourist board of Western Norway. Our main functions are international marketing of the Fjord Norway region, press-and study trips, and to convey information from the Fjord Norway region to tour operators, press and consumers worldwide. Find more information on our website For more pictures and video material click here Fjord Norway is the official tourist board of Western Norway Our main functions are international marketing of the Fjord Norway region and to convey information from the Fjord Norway region to tour operators Fjord Norway's vision is to be the most professional and competent destination company in Europe The company shall position the Fjord Norway region as the most attractive destination for nature based A cooperation with Fjord Norway will make it easier for you to plan trips to and in Fjord Norway We know the area and will be able to inform you about various offers routes and major activities in the world’s premier Fjord region – including those off the beaten track The first use of biofuel for the defence sector's business trips with Norwegian was marked at Ålesund Airport Vigra today Norwegian will blend 15 percent biofuel on over 1 million business trips until 2028 The agreement is the largest of its kind in Norwegian history and most likely the first in a NATO context "This agreement is an important step in the defence sector's climate and environmental strategy The sector aims to cut 20 per cent of CO2 emissions by 2030 and reduce emissions from purchased goods and services reduced emissions from business travel and the Armed Forces' own flights are central The work that has been done to pave the way here is important," says Chief of Defence Eirik Kristoffersen Norwegian has now delivered 1 million litres of biofuel to the airport in Ålesund with the help of the Finnish energy group St1 and the fuel supplier AFSN The biofuel will cover 15 % of the total consumption of the defence sector's more than 250,000 business trips in 2024 and will reduce CO2 emissions by over 2,000 tonnes this year Norway’s defence sector at the forefront "The Norwegian defence sector is leading the way here All parties involved can be proud of having created an agreement model that is at the forefront globally We hope both the public and private sectors will follow suit in the future," said Geir Karlsen confirms that Norway is ahead of the pack in this field organisations and experts to shape this tender for business travel which shows that we can be at the forefront The tender has already received international attention,” says Per Arne Johnsen acting director of procurement in the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency Short-distance biofuels increase security of supply no biofuel is produced for aviation in Norway To ensure that the agreement contributes to local demand the defence sector has set the requirement that refuelling must take place in Norway "Access to biofuels is important from a climate perspective while also contributing to increased security of supply Especially if the biofuel is short-travelled the defence sector wants to facilitate increased production of these types of fuel in Norway," says Chief of Defence Eirik Kristoffersen Norwegian has chosen to purchase short-haul biofuel from St1's newly established biorefinery in Gothenburg Sweden “Our biofuels production in Gothenburg enables us to serve Nordic customers closer and efficiently such as the Norwegian defense sector has committed contribute to predictability and enable us to continue our focus on executing energy transition ," says CEO Henrikki Talvitie of St1 the Norwegian Armed Forces carry out several tasks to keep Norway safe The Armed Forces are the most powerful instrument available to the Norwegian authorities We are tasked with several duties on behalf of society and have summarised our responsibilities into five main missions: The Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (NDMA)Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (NDMA) is an agency directly subordinate to the Norwegian Ministry of Defence manage and retire military materiel for the Norwegian Armed Forces and other agencies in the defence sector About St1St1 Nordic Oy is an energy group whose vision is to be the leading producer and seller of CO2-aware energy The Group researches and develops economically viable environmentally more sustainable energy solutions oil refining and renewable energy solutions such as waste-based advanced biofuels and industrial wind power The Group has more than 1,250 St1 and Shell branded retail stations and gas filling points in Finland St1 currently employs more than 1,000 people and markets aviation fuel to airlines at 16 airports in Norway we ensure a reliable supply of high-quality fuel to customers across the country AFSN has a strong focus on sustainability and actively contributes to reducing CO2 emissions in the aviation industry AFSN is owned by Shell Aviation and St1 in a 50/50 joint venture This is how Spitsbergen looks from above when flying from Ny-Ålesund to Spitsbergen: you can watch 5 minutes and 52 seconds of slow-motion footage from the world's most beautiful scheduled flight route It is not easy to describe the 25-minute journey between two of the planet's northernmost settlements It is one of the shortest flight routes in Norway and offers an exceptional experience of beautiful and untouched nature But unfortunately - or fortunately - this is an exclusive offer reserved for a few You cannot call a travel agency and buy a ticket.  Ny-Ålesund is a station for Arctic research and environmental monitoring the small airport normally does not accept tourists It is only open for so-called traffic with prior agreement meaning you must have special permission to land here You can't just come roaring in with your own plane And the scheduled flight here is only to serve the researchers and contribute to the operation of Ny-Ålesund according to the state-owned company's website Those lucky enough to fly to Ny-Ålesund can enjoy the fact that the ticket is heavily subsidised by the state.  The operation of the flight route amounts to around 40 million kroner but Kings Bay only takes in 15 million kroner in ticket revenues it is important to promote Ny-Ålesund's research significance.  it is the Norwegian Polar Institute that leads the research station and has the host role Hamnerabben Airport is located at 78°56′N 11°56′E It is Lufttransport that operates the route on behalf of Kings Bay They have two daily departures a week in winter they fly their two Dornier 228s with up to 19 seats but it has the pleasant advantage of only having window seats passengers are guaranteed an indescribable view of glaciers It takes the breath away from even the most discerning globetrotter and not least the beautiful Kongsfjorden.  And perhaps the occasional polar bear lurking around looking for dinner Redaktør og daglig leder Line Nagell Ylvisåker Abonnement97 98 49 78wenche@svalbardposten.no Annonser 97 98 49 78 marked@svalbardposten.no BesøksadresseSvalbardposten ASVei 509-29170 LongyearbyenPostadresseSvalbardposten ASPostboks 5039171 Longyearbyen Svalbardposten arbeider etter Vær Varsom-plakatens regler for god presseskikk Svalbardposten har ikke ansvar for innhold på eksterne nettsider som det lenkes til boasting the latest in high-end Arctic travel made a slow approach to the docks of Ny-Ålesund a remote settlement in Norway’s Svalbard Islands Ny-Ålesund is the northernmost inhabited outpost on Earth chartered the vessel for 183 tourists from Hong Kong Each passenger paid at least $13,000 for a two-week “Three Arctic Islands” tour marketed as an exclusive opportunity to reach the “top of the Earth,” complete with “the luxury of Chinese hospitality.” Clad in matching red jackets bearing a polar bear logo the travelers disembarked at their first stop: China’s Yellow River Research Station in Ny-Ålesund There they marked the 20th anniversary of the station – one of several research facilities established on Svalbard by different nations More than 100 Chinese tourists waved national flags beneath a Chinese Communist Party-style banner hung on the research station’s door The travel agency’s blog likened the celebration to “raising the Chinese national flag during the Olympics.” uniform was seen saluting and posing for photos A PLA Ground Force patch is visible on her right arm two professional cameras are slung over her shoulders The episode has raised serious alarm in Norway according to experts and government discussions reviewed by RFA and NRK Military function and symbolism on Svalbard is highly restricted and a treaty that governs foreign presence on the island forbids military activity Yet Chinese interests have blatantly disregarded these prohibitions in what experts say is a prime example of China’s increasing willingness to push the bounds of legal acceptability to exert its influence and power RFA and NRK can reveal that at least eight tourists on the cruise were PLA veterans with at least one still appearing to hold an on-going (though not active duty) role with the Chinese armed forces The PLA-linked tourists participated in a co-ordinated display of nationalism in the Arctic while on board their cruise ship and on Svalbard The jingoistic displays align with what experts regard as “gray zone” tactics employed by Beijing in which blurry lines between civilian and military actions are exploited to exert influence It comes as China-watchers warn that the West is ill-prepared to address the geopolitical consequences of this flexing of power “The big picture of China’s ambitions in the Arctic is that it reflects a clear long-term strategic goal: China wants to be a significant presence in the Arctic,” says Isaac Kardon a senior fellow for China Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Since declaring itself a “near-Arctic state” in 2018—despite lacking territorial claims—China has steadily built its presence through legal A remote Norwegian archipelago roughly twice the size of Hawaii Svalbard lies less than 1,000 kilometers from the North Pole some 650 kilometers north of mainland Norway its location is of strategic as well as scientific importance Its proximity to Russia’s Kola Peninsula—home to the Russian Northern Fleet and nuclear submarines—positions it as a critical focal point for military and resource interests Radar data collected from Svalbard can aid in missile trajectory calculations and satellite calibration missile routes could increasingly traverse the Arctic skies—covering the shortest distance from Beijing to Washington “The role Svalbard might play in a large-scale conflict involving the Arctic cannot be ignored,” warns a recent report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies Beijing‘s ’gray zone' tactics in the South China Sea ‘Secret’ New York police station mere of Beijing’s harassment push Chinese agents hatched brazen plot to kidnap RFA cartoonist “If tensions with the United States continue to worsen the Arctic becomes the only other viable route (for China) to Europe for significant volumes of energy,” says Kardon As melting ice opens up new shipping lanes the waters around Svalbard are set to become even more pivotal in global trade and shifting geopolitical dynamics governance of Svalbard-- until now a sleepy affair-- has come into focus A 1920 treaty granted Norway sovereignty over the archipelago while allowing signatory nations to engage in peaceful scientific and economic activities The treaty prohibits any “warlike purposes,” and gives Norway authority to enforce these restrictions on the islands first with mining operations during the Cold War China joined the Svalbard Treaty in 1925 but didn’t establish a scientific presence until 2004; the founding of the Yellow River Research Station marked a significant step forward in its Arctic ambitions the station supports scientific observation Its goal is to “contribute to global efforts in addressing climate change and other challenges,” the website says Not everyone is convinced that it is all benign There’s no such thing really as a completely civilian especially one with very strong strategic implications,” says Marc Lanteigne a Political Science professor at The Arctic University of Norway regardless of how civilian in nature it is will produce information which will get back to the Chinese military.” Russia held what Norwegian officials described as a militaristic parade in Barentsburg—something never before seen on Svalbard—in support of Moscow’s troops in Ukraine and snowmobiles moved through the town waving Russian flags A Russian company was fined for unauthorized use of a Mi-8 helicopter that flew overhead Norway is concerned about the rise of Russian—and now Chinese—nationalist displays on the island An internal report from the Norwegian Polar Institute the governing authority on Svalbard Island sounded alarm over the high-profile July celebration staged by the cruise ship tourists in front of the Chinese research station found the activities “particularly problematic” as they showed a clear disregard for regulations Norwegian authorities had explicitly denied the station permission to hang a celebratory banner given its nationalistic nature-- but the station displayed it anyway with Chinese scientists photographed posing in front of it The Institute noted that tourists appeared “well-prepared” with Chinese flags and stickers and that photographs were organized in such a way that “it is likely that the photos will be used by the Chinese authorities.” It made specific mention of the woman in the military fatigues The report noted that the authority was unsure what to do Director of the Norwegian Polar Institute later told RFA and NRK: “New Ålesund is a Norwegian research station and we do not see it as useful for the various institutions that rent premises there to hang banners “It would not be a successful practice if various research institutions in Ny-Ålesund start hanging such banners on the houses they rent.” Some experts fear the government has been caught on the back foot “I get the feeling that the Norwegian government is still playing catch-up on this,” says Lanteigne The government’s overall silence about its geopolitics has consequences according to Andreas Østhagen, a Senior Fellow at The Arctic Institute think tank. “When it comes to Svalbard and foreign and security policy, Norway’s strategy has been to sit quietly and do nothing,” he wrote “The less frank and transparent Norway is about issues pertaining to Svalbard the more misunderstandings and conspiracy theories are likely to emerge the Norwegian government said its representatives had met with the Chinese embassy in Oslo and reiterated the expectations for international guests emphasizing that “all activities in Ny-Ålesund must be civil.” They requested an explanation of the person in military dress and were told that the person “was a private citizen or cruise tourist wearing military-style clothing deemed appropriate for the Arctic wilderness,” they told RFA and NRK The Chinese embassy in Norway said that the cruise passengers were private tourists visiting Svalbard independently “The Chinese scientific team in Ny-Ålesund did not invite any tourists to participate in the relevant celebration activities,” the embassy told RFA and NRK “China has always actively participated in Arctic affairs in accordance with international law,” it said It did not directly address the questions of why banners and flags were displayed despite prior warnings and why military dress was allowed told RFA and NRK that their tour group informed the research station of its plans to stage a celebration at Yellow River and to hang banners and wave Chinese flags outside the station The station never objected or even raised it as an issue “The staff at the Yellow River Station came out to engage with us and everyone was quite happy about that,” Li told RFA and NRK A video of the tour group’s celebration was posted to Newayer’s social media account It further features eight guests telling the camera that they are PLA veterans and perform coordinated military salutes to China while a patriotic song plays as a soundtrack passengers gathered to share their stories of service in the PLA Li said that the presence of veterans on board was merely a “coincidence” and that when Newayer realized the connection the company organized a ceremony and incorporated the clip into its video as it’s difficult for active military members in China to travel abroad who identifies herself in the video as Yin Liu was photographed wearing military garb bearing the insignia of the PLA on Svalbard Liu says she enlisted in 1976 and fought in Vietnam in 1984 and gave the name of her unit an expert on the PLA at Tamkang University in Taiwan identified Liu’s fatigues as a “Type 21” training uniform issued by China’s Ministry of Defense in 2023 It is restricted to military personnel and would not be accessible to civilians The “Type 21” uniform can be seen on the Chinese Defense Department website it was likely that Liu was a member of a local militia unit Militia units are one of three branches of the Chinese armed forces the other two being the PLA and the People’s Armed Police Attempts to reach Liu were unanswered by press time But regardless of her status or those of other PLA-linked tourists “the sight of Chinese veterans waving national flags and performing salutes in the Arctic serves as an effective piece of internal propaganda,” says Lin it symbolizes the assertion of influence in a geopolitically significant region.” He added: “It’s about operating within legal ambiguities—pushing boundaries without directly violating laws it could be active-duty soldiers without the uniform gradually testing international responses and how far they can go.” These displays represent “classic ‘gray zone’ activity—conduct that doesn’t overtly breach regulations but pushes boundaries,” according to Kardon it may appear as patriotic tourists expressing national pride; on the other it subtly normalizes a more visible Chinese presence legitimizing scientific activities that can serve dual purposes like gathering environmental data and military intelligence.” Such incidents can serve to gauge reactions particularly from Norway and other Arctic nations helping China understand which behaviors are tolerated “Given the strategic importance of the Arctic to the U.S. there is little doubt that this expanding presence is deliberate.” But sources familiar with diplomatic discussions say that Norway is unlikely to take a leading role in pushing back against China Norway just doesn’t have a lot of equities in its dealings with China,” says Kardon Overt criticism or perceived slights can cause notable damage when Beijing banned imports of Norwegian salmon after its Nobel committee awarded the Peace Prize to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo room for more muscular tactics in the Arctic will grow Last month as China celebrated the 75th anniversary of the People’s Republic the Chinese Coast Guard engaged in joint operations with Russian forces in the Arctic This was preceded in September by a meeting of Russian and Chinese officials in Beijing to discuss economic development and resource extraction in the region a Chinese and Russian meeting in Svalbard to explore opening a joint research center in Pyramiden I would say this is the latest version of what China and Russia are trying to do—find a way to get to the red line without crossing it,” says Lanteigne referring to the Yellow River celebration incident one that really demonstrates that China is now starting to deviate more directly from Norway regarding what is and is not proper activity on Svalbard.” Lanteigne views this as a pressing challenge that the Norwegian government must confront head-on “I think there needs to be the understanding that with the Arctic beginning to militarize as a whole launched from Andøya Space’s launch facility at Ny-Ålesund has confirmed the existence of a new and global electric field Satellites in polar orbits have long noticed that the atmosphere is leaking particles from the atmosphere in the polar regions out to space This leak was in 1968 coined the name the «polar wind» – Scientists have suspected that a new and unknown electric field is behind the leak – It was believed that one of the reasons this field hadn’t been measured before was that is was very weaker than what was technically possible to measure at the time lead by Glyn Collinson at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and Catholic University of America – To give the new instrument the chance to do its job it was decided to launch it onboard a sub-orbital research rocket from Ny-Ålesund The northern location of Andøya Space’s launch facility at Svalbard makes it the only launch facility in the world where you can launch directly into the «polar wind» the american research rocket Endurance lifted off from launch pad S2 at Svalbard through the «polar wind» while performing its measurements – Modern research rockets gathers a fantastic amount of data – And it has taken a couple of years to go through everything and has confirmed that there is a ambipolar electric field on earth which is regarded to be as fundamental as the magnetic field and gravity – To illustrate how weak this field is; during its flight Endurance measured a tiny 0.55 volt difference in electric potential – But it was enough for the scientists to explain the «polar wind» it is still capable of launching hydrogen ions out to space at supersonic speeds – This has now opened up for new and interesting questions How has this field helped form life on Earth The findings from Endurance is now published by NASA including in the scientific magazine Nature – We here at Andøya Space Sub-Orbital is of course very proud of having supported the Endurance project supported by the Norwegian and British research councils also contributed by performing simultaneous radar measurements which helped the scientists interpret the data from Endurance.  – This shows the importance of doing basic research Scientists have studied the atmosphere for centuries and suddenly something new pops up which turns upside down on what you though you knew – The Endurance project and Andøya Space was given a prestigous NASA Group Achievement Award – Previous recipiants has been the James Webb Telescope and Parker Solar Probe For more information, please contact Andøya Space Sub-Orbital +47 76 14 44 00press@andoyaspace.no Release your inner explorer in our visitor center Spaceship Aurora Kjøp offisielle Andøya Space-produkter i vår nettbutikk på spaceshop.no Privacy policy expands its collaboration with Norwegian Hydrogen by contracting a supply of green hydrogen to Veidekke’s newly converted plant in Ålesund This move will enable Veidekke to utilize hydrogen at two of its asphalt production plants further solidifying its commitment to reducing carbon emissions in its operations it was announced that Norwegian Hydrogen would deliver green hydrogen produced in Hellesylt to Veidekke’s first asphalt plant in Kristiansund the world’s first factory capable of producing asphalt solely using hydrogen as an energy carrier for the heating process After successfully delivering hydrogen to Kristiansund for several months Veidekke is expanding its collaboration with Norwegian Hydrogen to supply green hydrogen to a second asphalt plant in Ålesund Official Opening of the Ålesund asphalt production plant Veidekke officially opened the factory in Ålesund This event marked a significant milestone in Veidekke’s journey towards sustainable “We are pleased to have Norwegian Hydrogen on board for this project Norwegian Hydrogen is a player that not only talks but actually delivers and produces We hope to collaborate on other hydrogen projects in different parts of the country in the coming years as well,” says Martin Holmqvist Director of Asphalt at Veidekke Infrastructure Chief Commercial Officer at Norwegian Hydrogen commented: “There are huge climate benefits to be gained by using green hydrogen within several industry segments It is inspiring to work with the team at Veidekke who shares our ambition to lead the way in the climate transition of these sectors Congratulations to Veidekke on the opening of the new Ålesund facility We are thrilled to expand this collaboration with deliveries to Ålesund.” asphalt plants require high thermal energy all contributing to significant climate emissions asphalt production accounts for approximately 400,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year Veidekke sets out to drastically reduce these emissions Top News,Events CSN is excited to announce the launch of a new high-level event that will be happening yearly ‘The 1st CSN Greece Shipping Debate’ Top News,Cyprus C.M.C.L Cyprus Marine Club Limited (CMC) hosted Members Get Together with a presentation from Mr Top News,Greece In the face of unpredictable provisioning costs and longer lead times MCTC has reinforced its commitment to supporting vessel… World,Word newsletter The British International Freight Association has launched a cargo community advisory body which will undertake a lot of the activity previously… Design & Development by P.KAN.DESIGNER Design & Development by P.KAN.DESIGNER © 2025 Cyprus Shipping News. All rights reserved Play Brightcove videoITV News' Science Correspondent Martin Stew Health and Science Producer Philip Sime and Camera Operator Barnaby Green report from Svalbard in the Arctic Circle The Arctic is the rapidly melting front line of global warming The island of Spitsbergen in Svalbard, Norway, is warming around three times faster than most places on our planet Understanding how and why it's melting so fast could hold the key to preparing the planet for our changing climate We’ve been invited to join scientists from the Natural Environment Research Council and the British Antarctic Survey at their base in Ny-Ålesund At 78.55 degrees north - just a few hundred miles from the North Pole - it is the world’s northernmost settlement To reach the town requires a flight on a twin-turboprop plane from Longyearbyen The island is roughly the size of Scotland you get glimpses of huge glaciers snaking beneath snow and ice levels are always at their lowest but things appear to be becoming more extreme Henry Burgess of the UK Arctic Office explains how Svalbard's temperature has changed over the past 50 years and why it matters for the rest of the world which is now an international hub for polar research There are teams here from 10 different countries ranging to Norway to Germany We meet French scientists Thomas Poinsot and Celas Marie-Sainte Their team has been releasing weather balloons daily since the 1980s Credit: ITV NewsTheir data has contributed to recordings which show average winters in Svalbard are 7.7 degrees celcius warmer now than they were 50 years ago This warming is at a rate far faster than previous fluctuations long before the industrial revolution I asked Celas what his response is to people who deny man-made emissions are impacting our climate "It's a complicated question," he said "Usually those people don't want to get facts everybody who lives in Svalbard can see changes … a couple of decades ago it was possible to cross the fjord directly with the snow mobile." Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News "The islands in front of us right now was part of the glacier before So all these changes have happened," Celas continued So if you see a picture of before and a picture of today And it's not naturally different," he added Over the next few days we’ll be heading out to take a closer look at the glaciers retreating fast and following different scientific teams as they race to monitor ice cores before they melt Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know.. The Chinese research station in Ny Ålesund in Svalbard. (Photo: Sphinx Public Domain) The Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has registered an increased interest in Svalbard by China Read in Norwegian. The Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has registered an increased Chinese interest in Svalbard That is reported by Svalbardposten. In its national threat assessment for 2024 the PST wrote that Chinese students and researchers operate in Svalbard That is to normalize Chinese activity and facilitate intelligence work Many Chinese tourists have visited Longyearbyen this summer and some have behaved in a way that has raised suspicion of whether they have been mapping buildings and infrastructure there have also been several Chinese attempts to buy Norwegian properties China also wants to build a laser station in Adventdalen Some of this has been open and publicly known "There have been several attempts to buy in the past years although we do not have exact statistics," says Special Advisor Jon Fitje Hoffmann with the Governor of Svalbard to Svalbardposten "Some of it has been open and publicly known while others have been brought to our attention through various contacts," he says High North News reported on the visit by a Chinese research delegation to Russia's science center in Barentsburg the aim of which was to discuss expanded research cooperation in the Arctic China recently completed its third icebreaker they placed several acoustic listening buoys in the North Sea China also conducts significant research activity in Ny-Ålesund this beautiful island-based city is a fantastic base from which to explore the region’s stunning natural landscapes Much of the architecture dates back to the Art Nouveau era (a fire had destroyed most of the buildings prior to this so large-scale rebuilding took place in this period) With colourful houses and surrounding waters it’s a pretty place to wander at a relaxed pace stopping for some local seafood or a spot of vintage shopping The city’s Atlantic Sea Park is the largest saltwater aquarium in Scandinavia and well worth a visit for those of all ages Stay a little outside of the city in this sustainably-minded boutique eco-lodge where the 30 rooms are housed in turf-topped wooden cabins Guests can chill out with a book in the library (where complimentary tea and biscuits are served each afternoon) or in the spa and dine on four-course feasts in the firelit restaurant walking poles and fishing tackle and you can rent kayaks and fishing boats — then on your return with a stay in this stylishly renovated warehouse on the quayside beside the Ålesund Strait set at the end of the pier a little away from the main building) is a converted lighthouse with typical Scandi minimalism and design and pictures on the walls narrate the story of the building’s past as a boathouse while the hotel’s little store sells gourmet products to take home (or on your day’s adventures) * All the properties and products we feature are independently selected by our editors and contributors If you buy something we may earn a commission The Local Europe ABVästmannagatan 43113 25 StockholmSweden Ålesund could see up to 700,000 cruise passengers this year, the city’s port authority has told public broadcaster NRK and it says something about the work that has been done over many years to position Ålesund and the surrounding area as a tourism destination,” Tom Anker Skrede head of tourism at Destinasjon Ålesund og Sunnmøre The city was also the most visited port city in Norway last year but overtourism has caused some issues for its residents.' READ ALSO: Where in Norway do they dislike tourists? the city can receive up to 12,000 visitors per day have a limit of 8,000 cruise tourists per day Even though Skrede said that tourists contribute around 700 million kroner to the local authority Ålesund Municipality has said it would begin exploring the town’s capacity for tourism and whether a limit should be introduced “We will create a plan for how we want to develop together with the tourism industry and find out how we can develop as a destination and find a good balance together with those who live and work in the city but also for how we will manage to create even more value,” deputy mayor Monica Molvær told NRK Skrede said that the tourist board would also analyse the town’s tourism capacity before commenting on the municipality’s plans The industry organisation for tourism in Norway recommends that all port cities have limits on cruise tourism numbers in place “All tourism must be subordinated to those who have lived there before Tourism should be good for those who live there and those who visit sustainable industry that can be there for years and avoid conflicts,” Kristin Krohn Devold Please log in here to leave a comment The dates displayed for an article provide information on when various publication milestones were reached at the journal that has published the article activities on preceding journals at which the article was previously under consideration are not shown (for instance submission Journal of Hazardous MaterialsCitation Excerpt :In response to market demands for flame retardants a range of novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) has been developed and subsequently manufactured as alternatives to traditional BFRs in various products [3] NBFRs have been detected in a variety of environmental substrates Marine food web [7] soil [8] and even human blood [9] pentabromoethylbenzene (PBEB) has been found worldwide in various environmental matrix [10–13] Science of the Total EnvironmentCitation Excerpt :For example the surrounding area of the electronic waste disassembling area is heavily polluted by NBFRs (Wu et al. NBFRs have been found in polar regions with high detection frequencies (Hao et al. suggesting long-distance transportation and high persistence The ecological and health toxicity patterns of NBFRs are similar to those of BFRs (Stieger et al. Atmospheric EnvironmentCitation Excerpt :PBEB and PBT were present mainly in the gas phase (φ < 40%) and DBDPE were mostly in the particle phase (φ > 70%) and HBB and DPTE were distributed in both phases These results were similar to previous findings near sources (de la Torre et al. but did not match the observations in the polar regions where NBFRs were predominantly in the gas phase (Xiong et al. The gas-particle partitioning quotient for gas and bulk particles (KP) relates to the measured NBFR levels in the gas (CA) and particle phases (CP) and TPM Journal of Hazardous MaterialsCitation Excerpt :Although the median concentration showed an increasing trend (Fig no significant difference occurred among the sampling years This finding was inconsistent with previous studies [10,42,51] which observed a decrement in PBDE concentrations in air ∑25PBDE (except BDE-209) presented a significant increase (p < 0.05) with a doubling time of 11.2 years All content on this site: Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V., its licensors, and contributors. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies. For all open access content, the relevant licensing terms apply. Volume 11 - 2023 | https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2023.1123981 This article is part of the Research TopicPan-Arctic Snow ResearchView all 8 articles The snow season in the Svalbard archipelago generally lasts 6–10 months a year and significantly impacts the regional climate Due to the lack of long-term continuous snowpack physical data it is still challenging for the numerical snow physics models to simulate multi-layer snowpack evolution an automated nivometric station (ANS) was installed ∼1 km Southwest from the settlement of Ny-Ålesund (Spitzbergen It automatically provides continuous snow data including NIR images of the fractional snow-cover area (fSCA) internal snow temperature and liquid water content (LWC) profiles at different depths with a 10 min time resolution Here we present the first-year record of automatic snow preliminary measurements collected between November 2020 and July 2021 together with weekly manual observations for comparison The snow season at the ANS site lasted for 225 days with an annual net accumulation of 117 cm (392 mm of water equivalent) The LWC in the snowpack was generally low (<4%) during wintertime we observed three snow-melting events between November and February 2021 and one in June 2021 connected with positive temperature and rain on snow events (ROS) In view of the foreseen future developments comprehensive snowpack monitoring system in Ny-Ålesund measuring key essential climate variables needed to understand the seasonal evolution of the snow cover on land in response to increasing temperatures and insolation in late spring and summer becoming isothermal and homogeneous in stratification to fill this observational gap and assist in the interpretation of the distribution of chemical species in the snowpack an automated nivometric station (ANS) was installed in Ny-Ålesund in West Spitzbergen It provides continuous measurements of snow depth (SD) liquid water content (LWC) and fractional snow-cover area (fSCA) the first-year record of preliminary measurements collected together with manual observations for comparison the main issues encountered and the possible future implementations to fully assess the temporal evolution of the snowpack in real time constituting the supporting structure of the ANS was fixed to the ground through steel cables and anchor rods adjacent to a delimited area dedicated for the year-round monitoring of snow chemistry since 2018 FIGURE 1. Location and general view of the instrumental set-up composing the Automated Nivometric Station (ANS) installed in Ny-Ålesund (Svalbard) in November 2020. Maps and satellite images from TopoSvalbard (https://toposvalbard.npolar.no/) Description of the instrumental set-up installed on the ANS updated to 2021 we present the first-year measurements of snow depth snow temperature and LWC profiles acquired in Ny-Ålesund during the snow season between November 2020 and July 2021 We complement our observational record with measures of the fSCA derived from NIR time lapse imagery starting in late spring and lasting until the end of the snow melting season (April-June 2021) We also show manual measurements of snow depth and snow temperature profiles carried out at weekly resolution for comparison Snow depth and temperature profile in Gruvebadet (Ny-Ålesund) over the snow season 2020–2021 the tick black line indicates the snow depth acquired by the ultrasonic sensor The upper panel shows the thermal gradient of the snowpack inferred from the ANS temperature sensors (installed at 5 125 cm) with vertical-colored stripes in the background indicating the 2-m air temperature at the Climate Change Tower (CCT) about ∼700 m far from Gruvebadet Lower panel shows manual measurements of snow height and snow temperature carried every week for comparison the dark green line indicates the fractional snow-cover area (fSCA) retrieved by the NIR camera during the melting season The automated nivometric station (ANS) installed in Gruvebadet (Ny-Ålesund) close to the snow sampling area on (A) November 7th Note that the snow temperature sensors were originally installed directly on the ANS truss after the ROS events we decided to move them to the separate unit to minimise the disturbance of the ANS main structure (C–D) The NIR camera installed in April 2021 on the top of the ANS truss and (E) a nocturnal image from the NIR camera in which snow temperature sensors are visible To assess whether a given temperature sensor was effectively surrounded by snow during the snow season snow depth measurements are combined with time-lapse imagery snow temperature is strongly attenuated with depth and the temperature profile seems to be affected only by longer cycles than diurnal the snow temperature profile of the snowpack was constantly at 0°C becoming the melting period of the snow cover at the ANS site lasted a total of 39 days The Pearson correlation coefficient between manual and automatic snow temperature measurements (out of a total of 178 observations) is r = 0.92* (excluding 12 outliers* with a difference between manual and automatic snow temperature >5°C or < −5°C) and r = 0.85 considering all the observations (not shown) Since manual observations were carried once a week while automatic measurements are continuously acquired every 10 min for comparison we averaged the latter over a six-hour time window centered at 13:30 on the day of manual sampling snow temperature (middle panels) and LWC (lower panels) in January Yellow bands indicate the warming events associated with ROS and enhanced seasonal melting (late June) the latter approach is efficient for having a more reliable description of the snow evolution especially during the melting season we extended the end of snow cover to 3 July 2021 since snow patches were present in the neighbourhood of the ANS measurement site Although the snow physical data acquired by the ANS during the first year of snow monitoring in Ny-Ålesund showed a high potential for future developments we would highlight some technical issues encountered during the snow season to suggest some possible solutions the snowpack level sensor can convey water underneath creating a melting cone and altering the snow height measurement Although this problem cannot be physically avoided a possible solution is to compare the SD measured by the ultrasonic sensor with the SD data inferred from the NIR camera images to assess possible bias between the two positions we reported damages to the separate unit of the ANS holding the snow temperature probes Future developments of the ANS will include a fence to shield the instruments from local fauna and vice versa This work aims to present the instrumental set-up composing our ground-based automated nivometric station (ANS) installed in November 2020 in Ny-Ålesund In addition to the instrumental specification we provide two records of automatic and manual measurements of snow depth and snow temperature together with a record of liquid water content in the snowpack acquired over the first year of snow monitoring (winter 2020 - summer 2021) we installed a near-infrared time lapse camera to measure the fractional snow-cover and observe surface snow features The snow season lasted 225 days in total between November ‘20 and June ‘21 with a maximum snow depth of 117 cm observed in May 2021 we observed a strong connection between near-surface atmospheric temperature and the snow temperatures in the upper 50 cm of the snowpack lower snow layers were less affected by external temperature changes at least on diurnal time scales The combined information from snow temperature and LWC data indicate four distinct melting events and only impacted the basal part of the snowpack involved the whole snowpack and lasted ∼40 days until the seasonal snow cover completely disappeared in the first days of July 2021 measurements of the fractional snow-cover from the NIR camera indicated that the snow cover lasted 4 days more compared with automatic snow depth measurements by the ultrasonic sensor including the installation of new sensors for measuring snow surface temperature comprehensive snowpack monitoring system in Ny-Ålesund measuring key snow physical properties The data collected are fundamental to a deeper knowledge of the snowpack evolution over the snow season and its response to warming climate and/or increased predicted extreme weather events such as rain on snow events continuous records of physical snow observations could be extremely valuable to constrain and further develop numerical simulation of the seasonal snowpack with a focus on the distribution and total load of contaminants and impurities as well as to better understand the microbiological activity within it The datasets presented in this study can be found in online repositories. The names of the repository/repositories and accession number(s) can be found below: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7342300 and https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7342282 FS and AS conceived and designed the research and RS collaborated on data collection and post-processing and RS carried out the data analysis presented in this paper developed the codes used to analyse the data and prepared the datasets AD and SD managed and provided the funding projects FS drafted the manuscript with contributions from all co-authors All authors reviewed and edited the manuscript This work has been conducted thanks to the financial support the Joint Research Center ENI-CNR—“Aldo Pontremoli” WP1 “Impatto delle emissioni in atmosfera sulla criosfera e sul cambiamento climatico nell’Artico” the Svalbard Science Forum (SSF) for the Arctic Field Grant “Aerosol Flux in Arctic” (ALFA) project (RiS ID 11390; NFR contract 310658) The dataset about the fSCA has been prepared in the framework of the SIOS Core Data (Research Council of Norway Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System—Knowledge Centre Authors acknowledge the Institute of Polar Science (ISP-CNR) and its staff for the logistics of the Arctic Station “Dirigibile Italia” in Ny-Ålesund The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher AMAP Assessment 2015: Black carbon and ozone as Arctic climate forcers Norway: Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme Google Scholar CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar A Global Cryosphere Watch Initiative for improving in-situ snow observations and their access for rescuing/collecting historical in-situ snow data Google Scholar First discrete iron(II) records from Dome C (Antarctica) and the Holtedahlfonna glacier (Svalbard) PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar D’Amboise Implementation of a physically based water percolation routine in the Crocus/SURFEX (V7.3) snowpack model CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar snow and soil data (2013-2019) from a herb tundra permafrost site at Bylot Island for driving and testing snow and land surface models CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Microbial composition in seasonal time series of free tropospheric air and precipitation reveals community separation CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar Temperature profile of snowpack BT - 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Microbiological Chemistry and Geomicrobiology Volume 12 - 2021 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.757812 The active layer of permafrost in Ny Ålesund Svalbard (79°N) around the Bayelva River in the Leirhaugen glacier moraine is measured as a small net carbon sink at the brink of becoming a carbon source microbes in the active layers have been shown to drive organic matter degradation and greenhouse gas production creating positive feedback on climate change the microbial metabolisms linking the environmental geochemical processes and the populations that perform them have not been fully characterized and isotopic data paired with 10 Pseudomonas sp cultures and metagenomic libraries of two active layer soil cores (BPF1 and BPF2) from Ny Ålesund BPF2 had statistically higher C/N ratios (15 ± 1 for BPF1 vs statistically lower organic carbon (2% ± 0.6% for BPF1 vs statistically lower nitrogen (0.1% ± 0.03% for BPF1 vs The d13C values for inorganic carbon did not correlate with those of organic carbon in BPF2 suggesting lower heterotrophic respiration An increase in the δ13C of inorganic carbon with depth either reflects an autotrophic signal or mixing between a heterotrophic source at the surface and a lithotrophic source at depth Potential enzyme activity of xylosidase and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase increases twofold at 15°C indicating cold adaptation in the cultures and bulk soil Potential enzyme activity of leucine aminopeptidase across soils and cultures was two orders of magnitude higher than other tested enzymes implying that organisms use leucine as a nitrogen and carbon source in this nutrient-limited environment Besides demonstrating large variability in carbon compositions of permafrost active layer soils only ∼84 m apart results suggest that the Svalbard active layer microbes are often limited by organic carbon or nitrogen availability and have adaptations to the current environment and metabolic flexibility to adapt to the warming climate Pathways for carbon degradation and the relationship of carbon degradation to nitrogen limitation have not been fully characterized in this region nor have they been coupled to extracellular enzyme assays and isotopic compositions of carbon and nitrogen Due to increases in temperature and microbial activity this warm permafrost location could be at the brink of becoming a net source of greenhouse gasses such as CH4 and CO2 we combined soil carbon and nitrogen analysis and metagenomes to gain a broader view of current carbon degradation activities and their relationship to nitrogen cycling We investigated the microbial influence on two active layer geochemical profiles by combining cultured isolates with metagenomic inferences and soil geochemistry such as carbon and nitrogen content and stable isotope ratios This multifaceted approach showed heterotrophic metabolism dominating the location with higher labile carbon Autotrophic signatures are more prevalent in the site with higher inorganic carbon content and a higher C/N ratio Potential rates of extracellular enzymes and the gene counts of the enzymes were compared between measurements made on bulk soil vs Enzymatic analyses over a range of temperatures displayed higher activity in colder temperatures in both the bulk soil and cultured isolates Understanding the pathways of carbon degradation in natural microbial communities and cultured isolates from the active layer soils is important for determining how these communities will degrade natural organic matter as more of it becomes available due to thaw Freshly cored samples were removed from the drill and kept inside presterilized polycarbonate core liners (Jon’s Machine Shop Core liners were capped and stored inside a sterile lined cooler to maintain frozen temperature (A) Active layer cores were taken from two permafrost sites near the Bayelva River in the Leirhaugen glacier moraine in Ny Ålesund Inset A-1 shows the location of the image in panel (A) within the Svalbard archipelago (B) Picture taken from the BPF1 borehole in April 2018 at the time of retrieval (C) Borehole location of BPF1 marked by metal permafrost probe in September 2019 (D) Example of core sample retrieved from BPF2 site Cores were removed from the core liner and sliced into 2-cm-depth intervals using a sterile geological sampling hammer and chisel at the King’s Bay AS Marine Laboratory (Ny Ålesund A portion of the sample was weighed and then dried in a 60°C oven for 24 h to determine gravimetric water content Bulk density of the cores was estimated by measuring volume and dry mass of one intact 2.8-cm core puck with a diameter of 8 cm collected from BPF1; the resulting uniform bulk density was applied to all core samples for bulk density Closest relative of 16S rRNA genes from cultured Pseudomonas spp and δ15N were determined on finely ground soil samples (30 mg for BPF1 and 40 mg for BPF2) using a Costech ECS4010 Elemental Analyzer coupled to a Thermo-Finnigan Delta+XL mass spectrometer via a Thermo-Finnigan Conflo III device and the oxidation furnace was operated at 1,050°C and the reduction furnace at 650°C These measurements were performed at the Stable Isotope Laboratory at the University of Tennessee All nitrogen and phosphorous assays were conducted using protocols modified for a 96-well microplate reader (Synergy H1 Hybrid Reader the amount of POXC was corrected for soil water content and reported in μg POXC g dry soil–1 totaling 200 μl of volume per sample Samples underwent PCR thermocycling in a BioRad T100 ThermoCycler (BioRad samples were dyed with 6 × TriTrack DNA Loading Dye (Thermo Fisher Scientific Visualization of the PCR product was compared to a GeneRuler 1 kb Plus DNA Ladder (Thermo Fisher Scientific The samples were then placed into a 1.5% agarose gel with Midori green DNA stain at 90 V for 45 min with BioRad PowerPac Basic (BioRad United States) for PCR product verification Amplified 16S rRNA gene (27F, 1492R) PCR product was cleaned with Qiagen PCR Clean Up Kit (Qiagen, Germany) and Sanger sequenced at the Sequencing Core Facility at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Sequences were viewed, and forward and reverse reads were combined from the chromatogram in 4Peaks (v.1.7.2), and DECIPHER v2.17.1 (Wright et al., 2012) was used to check for chimeras The combined sequences were analyzed in nucleotide BLAST (v2.11.0) and the closest related organisms were downloaded for comparison Output sequences were classified with SILVA Sina (v1.2.11) SINA Alignment (v1.2.11) was also used to compare these isolates to 16S rRNA genes cataloged in the SSU database and to make a RAxML tree All sequenced isolates have been deposited on National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) GenBank accession numbers MZ773212–MZ773221 All whole genomes are available on NCBI accession number PRJNA649544 The same protocol was used for cell counts of the bulk soil intervals and the cultures. The soil intervals used a dilution of 1:20 (1 × PBS: Soil suspension); the cultures were diluted based on visual opacity and spectrophotometer reading but did not exceed a 1:40 dilution (1 × PBS:culture broth) (see Supplementary Data File 1) 5 × SYBR gold stain was added and filtered on a vacuum Hoefer box on 0.2-μm Millipore round filters Filters were adhered to microscope slides with Vecta Sheild© A microscope used was a Zeiss Axio Imager M2 Epifluorescence Microscope (Oberkochen Cells were counted in 30 random fields of view at 10 × magnification in the singular grid hemocytometer for eyepiece PL 10 × /23 in 23 mm × 23 mm Total cell counts were calculated by the following equation: where xcells¯ is the average of the cells counted sample filtered is the total sample used in the dilution Afilter is the area of the Millipore 0.2 μm filter used Agrid is the area of the hemocytometer grid and dilution factor is the initial dilution factor of the sample:1 × PBS Maximum potential activities for seven major carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous hydrolytic enzymes were assayed at three incubation temperatures (5, 15, and 25°C) using fluorometric methods in triplicate (Saiya-Cork et al., 2002; Bell et al., 2013) Fluorescently labeled substrates were used to measure the activity of exogenously added small substrate proxies for the following enzymes: α-glucosidase (AG) The same eight soil increments (2.75 g) used to measure soil extractables (above) were suspended with 50 mM Tris buffer (pH 7.7) matching the measured mean sample pH Added fluorescent labels 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (MUC) and 4-methylumbelliferone (MUB) were used for standardization Soil slurries were incubated with MUC and MUB standards and labeled substrates (200 μl of 200 μM solution) for 3 h at 25°C Fluorescence was measured using a microplate reader (Synergy H1 Hybrid Reader United States) with 365 nm excitation wavelength and 450 nm emission wavelength set at optimal gain Enzyme activity was calculated in nmol g dry soil–1 h–1 with higher activities indicating a greater amount of fluorescently labeled substrate that was degraded under the ideal conditions of incubation We modified the above maximum enzymatic activity potential method to measure the 10 cultured isolates’ activity. Cultures grew in broth R2A for 24 h at 25°C prior to the experiment to reach exponential growth phase (Supplementary Figure 4). Cultures at this time were also used for a cell count to determine the number of cells that were in solution (Supplementary Figure 5A) Cultures were suspended in 35 ml 7.7 pH Tris buffer and then distributed across the 96-well plate and incubated with the small substrate proxies listed above Elemental Analyzer data for BPF1 and BPF2 core samples before acid treatment (red for BPF1 and blue for BPF2) and after acid treatment (yellow for BPF1 and dark blue for BPF2) and NO3– measured in μg/g of dry soil with the exception of DOC measured in mg/g of dry soil Inorganic nitrogen is the sum of NH4+ and NO3– Values below zero indicate an amount below the detectable level Full-length 16S rRNA gene sequences of the 10 Svalbard isolates (in bold) were aligned using the Silva SINA (v1.2.11) and Arb-Silva was used to identify their closest relatives A RAxML tree was visualized in iTOL (v5.7) The GenBank accession number for each organism is listed in parentheses Most enzymatic activities decreased with depth at both sites Potential enzyme activities at each temperature (red for 25°C and bright blue for 5°C) for (A) BPF1 and BPF2 and (B) 10 cultured isolates Markers show the mean of triplicate measurements with error bars for one standard deviation Enzymes are as follows: β-D-cellubiosidase (CB) LAP had the highest range of gene counts (2–71) and PHOS had the most even distribution of counts between all the samples (9–,15) Leucine aminopeptidase was the only enzyme that appeared to be related to the quantity of genes in the metagenomes LAP had the cumulative highest number of gene counts and the highest range of activity for the bulk soil and the cultures at 25°C PHOS genes were present in every sample and had highest activities in the 25°C treatment Gene counts from whole metagenomes and whole genome sequences that encode for each enzyme so the possibility of the δ13C trends in inorganic carbon could also reflect a carbonate source from below mixing with a heterotrophic source above Given the evidence for a decrease in heterotrophy in BPF2 and the prevalence of 13C-enriched carbonate deposits in the area both processes likely contribute to the observed stable carbon isotope trends This may occur in the upper few centimeters at both sites as NH4+ decreases and NO3– slightly increases with depth the δ15N signature that is decreasing with depth at both locations likely originates from plant processes and degraded proteins Even though BPF1 has more labile carbon and higher microbial biomass than BPF2 it only had higher activities in two enzymes (AG and BG) and only in the upper section the reason the microbial community maintains similar rates of carbon-degrading enzymes may be to access the nitrogen and phosphorous in organic compounds Both enzymes are good evidence that the cold adaptations observed in pure-culture experiments are upheld in natural microbial populations This suggests that these enzymes are well adapted to a cold environment but have the flexibility to continue functioning as temperatures warm This is reflected in the lack of correlation between gene dosage per genome or per metagenome and the measured activity for that enzyme class This indicates that the increase in nitrogen limitation with depth at the Alaskan site may not apply to our Bayelva These Svalbard active layer soils differ from Taylor Valley in Antarctic McMurdo Dry Valley soils in DOC, water content, inorganic nitrogen, and labile carbon (Zeglin et al., 2009) Moisture from soils near McMurdo Dry Valley had 20 times the DOC and three orders of magnitude higher inorganic nitrogen than the Svalbard active layer samples The McMurdo Dry Valley has a higher inorganic nitrogen contribution from NO3– while Svalbard’s inorganic nitrogen contribution is mainly from NH4+ we found the Svalbard active layer to have a higher amount of organic nitrogen Labile carbon (POXC) in Svalbard was up to a hundred times higher than the Antarctic active layer even though the DOC was up to 20 times lower These measurements could indicate that Arctic and Antarctic sites may have different outcomes for carbon degradation as permafrost thaws and microbial activity increases Our work suggests that Svalbard will have higher activity due to the higher amounts of organic nitrogen and labile carbon based on POXC and C/N ratios their potential maximum enzymatic activities were similar This could mean that a smaller number of organisms are able to have the same enzymatic effect as a larger population Given the greater activity of most enzymes at higher temperatures, it is likely that Svalbard active-layer soils will experience higher microbial activity as the temperatures increase in this warm permafrost. From the data presented here, it is likely that the microbes will become more active once the Svalbard active layer expands as compared to the microbes present in Taylor Valley of McMurdo Dry Valley sites (Zeglin et al., 2009) The measured higher quantity of labile carbon in areas of soil like BPF1 could indicate that microbial activity will spike during permafrost thaw and active layer expansion While nitrogen is still a limiting nutrient for microbial activity in the Arctic the increase in soil organic matter degradation will introduce more labile nitrogen and carbon compounds allowing for a higher rate of microbial activity then stored nitrogen will be more available for plants to grow and perhaps could further lead to higher rates of plant derived carbon enzyme activity This study demonstrates that the active layer soil near Bayelva in Ny Ålesund Svalbard will become more microbially active with different carbon degradation pathways Whole genomes and Genbank submissions can be found on NCBI accession number PRJNA649544 and MZ773212–MZ77322, respectively. Kbase with the workflow of the metagenomic analysis can be found on permanent links: WGS: https://narrative.kbase.us/narrative/83182 MISEQ; https://narrative.kbase.us/narrative/56628 KS and RP contributed to the idea and hypothesis generation AF and PL contributed with experimental assistance and editing the manuscript and KL were responsible for funding acquisition and editing the manuscript KL contributed by advising the direction of the project All authors contributed to manuscript revision Funding came from the Simons Foundation (404586 to KL) NSF Dimensions of Biodiversity (DEB-1442262 to TV Office of Biological and Environmental Research Genomic Science Program (DE-SC0020369 to KL and the ASPIRE program (funded through the NSF to RP) We thank Andrew D. Steen, Lauren Mullen, Lisa Hubert, and Alexander B. O. Michaud for help with field sampling. Madison Spradley assisted with lab work. Nicholas T. 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This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) *Correspondence: Karen G. Lloyd, a2xsb3lkQHV0ay5lZHU= †These authors have contributed equally to this work Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher 94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or goodLearn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish Journal of Hazardous MaterialsCitation Excerpt :The recognition of new chemicals relies entirely on advanced analytical techniques which enable detection of highly resolved peaks (Hug et al. SNTS based on liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) has facilitated comprehensive identification and evaluation of emerging contaminants in aquatic environments (Choi et al. There have been a number of monitoring studies carried out for waters in Korea (Son et al. All content on this site: Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V. but in summer the population swells to more than 100 as scientists fly in from around the world and a weekly evening gathering called Strikk og Drikk Receive a Daily or Weekly summary of the most important articles direct to your inbox, just enter your email below. By entering your email address you agree for your data to be handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy The northernmost town in the world, Ny-Ålesund, has for more than 30 years hosted the UK’s Arctic Research Station – the nation’s only permanent infrastructure at the Earth’s northern pole Located on the Norwegian island of Svalbard – one of the most rapidly warming regions on Earth – the station acts as a base for UK scientists studying the Arctic’s ice On 7 February, Carbon Brief was invited to the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) the UK’s national polar research institute in Cambridge to hear more about what life is like for UK scientists living in the Arctic Circle BAS’s Arctic Day also offered a chance to hear about how researchers are working to understand the complex impacts of climate change on the land’s most northern edge Ny-Ålesund now hosts Arctic research stations for a range of countries including China It is accessible via a flight on a 14-seater plane that leaves four times a week from Longyearbyen Speaking at BAS’s Arctic Day, the institute’s Arctic operations manager Iain Rudkin explained that the town is famous for being the starting point for a number of “crazy” Arctic expeditions.  This includes the expeditions of Roald Amundsen, the Norwegian explorer who was the first man to successfully navigate the treacherous Northwest Passage through the Arctic to North America by boat in 1905 The UK’s Arctic Research Station was built in 1991. It consists of seven bedrooms, three laboratories, a sitting room, an office and storage space. The station can be explored room by room using this 3D virtual tour tool According to station lab manager Guy Hillyard a microscopic lab and a wet lab suitable for processing dirty soils and sediments The station also has an annex for drying mosses and soils freezers at temperatures from -18 to -25C for storing ice cores and separate freezers for storing frozen sediment bluetooth or other kinds of internet access Although many living at Ny-Ålesund appreciated the radio silence the decision was made to make it easier for people out in the field to call for help if in danger and to allow scientists to use scientific equipment that communicates via the internet BAS’s Arctic Day saw a number of UK-based scientists briefly explain the purposes of their research at Ny-Ålesund in the past and coming few months Dr Jaz Millar, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Bristol travelled to Ny-Ålesund in July 2023 as part of their research into how climate change could be affecting algal blooms on glaciers The algae that Millar studies is dark purple, meaning it lowers the “albedo” on the surface of glaciers Albedo is a term for describing the proportion of sunlight that is reflected away from a surface with bright white having a high albedo and dark colours having a low albedo When the albedo on the glacier’s surface is lowered It is possible that presence of meltwater induces the growth of more algae – potentially representing a self-reinforcing “worrying positive feedback loop” They studied algal growth with a range of techniques including bringing microscopes directly into their field sites and taking ice samples.  Millar’s research has not yet been published but the results suggest that the relationship between glacier melt and algal bloom growth may be more complex than just a linear positive feedback loop Elsewhere, Prof Kate Hendry explained more about her research into how the melting of glaciers could be altering the flow of key nutrients into coastal waters – eventually impacting marine ecosystems She explained that glacier meltwater typically contains nutrients that are needed by diatoms – single-cell algae that act as food for tiny marine creatures called zooplankton – which in turn support a wide range of fish These nutrients include iron nitrate and silicic acid As glaciers melt at an increasingly rapid rate because of climate change this may impact the growth of diatoms – in turn affecting species higher up the food chain Hendry’s team visited Ny-Ålesund in 2023 to collect more than 1,000 samples from glaciers Her team will return this year to look further at how the availability of iron and silicon in fjord environments could be affected by climate change The AI tool can search through different types of satellite imagery offering scientists the highest-resolution image available when considering factors such as cloud cover In the future, this tool could be used to help scientists understand in greater detail the extent to which sea ice is declining because of climate change “The big question is about the decline in sea ice extent you can get the sea ice extent in high fidelity Then you’ve got more precise information about how the sea ice extent is changing between years.” Finally, the conference heard from Laura Molares Moncayo, a PhD student at the Natural History Museum and Queen Mary University of London Her research is centred around the question of whether the Arctic’s atmosphere could be supporting an ecosystem that is invisible to the human eye researchers assumed that glaciers were devoid of complex lifeforms research has revealed that they actually support a vast array of microorganisms How did these microorganisms find their way into glaciers?  Glaciers grow by receiving rain and snow from the atmosphere glaciers could be considered a “condensed version of the atmosphere” that the microorganisms found in glaciers may have fallen from the atmosphere already possess the adaptations required to survive the tough conditions of the Arctic air she will travel to Ny-Ålesund to try to establish whether the Arctic atmosphere is home to an invisible ecosystem of microorganisms.  which collect any solid particles present in air into a filter She will then use DNA sequencing techniques to identify which microorganisms are present in her air samples She will also study the microorganisms’ functional genes which will offer clues into whether the microorganisms are interacting with each other when still in the air Antarctic sea ice ‘behaving strangely’ as Arctic reaches ‘below-average’ winter peak ‘Exceptional’ Antarctic melt drives months of record-low global sea ice cover Dwindling sea ice linked to decline of Arctic foxes in Canada’s Hudson Bay Polar bears and climate change: What does the science say? Get a round-up of all the important articles and papers selected by Carbon Brief by email. Find out more about our newsletters here Published under a CC license You are welcome to reproduce unadapted material in full for non-commercial use credited ‘Carbon Brief’ with a link to the article