Hello from Tromsø, Norway!

After a series of delayed and canceled flights and lost baggage, I finally arrived to join my fellow MOSAiC School participants late Monday night. The “dry days” before we board the RV Akademik Fedorov are filled with safety trainings and lectures. I am eager to board the ship and get underway tomorrow!

But, why is this expedition so important?

The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average. The Arctic Ocean is predicted to be ice-free by the end of the century. This warming will have major effects on the climate of the Northern Hemisphere, as well as for the animals and people that call the Arctic home.

The main goal of the ambitious MOSAiC Expedition is to increase our understanding of the Arctic climate system to improve global climate models. This data will help inform policy decisions relating to climate change mitigation and adaptation as well as managing sustainable development in the Arctic.

My role as a student in the MOSAiC School will be aboard the RV Akademik Fedorov, which is a support ice-breaker for the RV Polarstern–the ship that will be frozen in the sea-ice for a year. The Fedorov will head North towards 85°N with the Polarstern, set up a series of observation networks around the Polarstern (called the Distributed Network), refuel the Polarstern, and then head home to Tromsø. While on board, I will attend lectures from the leading scientists of the expedition and work with the biogeochemistry team to explore gas exchange between the ocean-sea ice-atmosphere. After we return, I will act as a MOSAiC Ambassador for a year, sharing my experience and the importance of the expedition with students in my home country.