Arctic, permafrost and sea ice

Ever since I was 18, when I saw a poster that said “Polar Meteorology” during an open house day at the University of Hamburg, the Antarctic has been my greatest dream. From then on, I did everything I could to make that dream come true. Today, as a member of the University of Hamburg’s Center...

The warming climate shifts dynamics of tundra environments and makes them release trapped carbon, according to a new study published in Nature. These changes could transform tundra ecosystems from carbon sinks into a carbon source, exacerbating the effects of climate change.

A team of over 70...

For the first time, the recovery of unique geological samples combined with sophisticated modelling provides surprising insights into when and where today's Antarctic ice sheet formed.

In recent years global warming has left its mark on the Antarctic ice sheets. The "eternal" ice in Antarctica...

In mid-March 2022, the large-scale international HALO-(AC)3 research campaign will begin investigating transformations of air masses in the Arctic. Three German aircraft will be deployed, scientists from the UK and France will also be involved during joint flights with two further aircraft. The...

How much carbon is released when permafrost soils thaw in the Arctic? Climate models cannot yet reliably predict this. An international research team has now investigated the role of plant roots. They release so-called exudates into the soil and thus accelerate the growth of microbes, which in...

The Arctic Ocean in summer will very likely be ice free before 2050, at least temporally. The efficacy of climate-protection measures will determine how often and for how long. These are the results of a new research study involving 21 research institutes from around the world, coordinated by...

Permafrost soils in the Arctic are thawing. As they do, large additional quantities of greenhouse gases could be released, accelerating climate change. In Russia, experiments are now being conducted in which herds of horses, bison and reindeer are being used to combat this effect. A study from...

In a seven-year laboratory study, Dr. Christian Knoblauch from Universität Hamburg’s Center for Earth System Research and Sustainability (CEN) and an international team have shown, for the first time, that significantly more methane is produced by thawing permafrost than previously thought. The...