Arlington, Va.-In recent years, scientists have observed a rapid thinning of the sea ice that covers the Arctic Ocean as well as shifts in ocean circulation. These changes appear to be caused by an alteration in the atmospheric circulation of the Northern Hemisphere-known as the Arctic Oscillation-which is roughly centered at the North Pole.
The Arctic Ocean circulation and the flowing of waters from the Arctic into the Greenland Sea affect the deep overturning circulation of the Atlantic Ocean and play an important role in regulating the Earth's climate.
To better understand these changes and their implications for global climate, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is supporting a five-year, $3.9 million project, called the North Pole Environmental Observatory (NPEO). At the Pole, the observatory is placed at a strategic location to study the interplay of ocean currents as well as other factors related to climate change.
For the third straight year, an international scientific team, including researchers from the University of Washington, established a temporary camp on the sea ice near the North Pole last month to retrieve a mile-long mooring containing scientific instruments, to insert buoys into the ice and to otherwise sample the waters of the Arctic Ocean.
In addition to the logistical challenges of establishing a world-class observatory in such harsh conditions, the scientific and logistical teams had to contend with scuba diving in the icy Arctic ocean, dealing with shifting sea ice that was frozen solid one day and open water the next and keeping an ever-watchful eye for polar bears in order to successfully complete their tasks.
The NPEO research team includes researchers from Oregon State University,
the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., the National Oceanographic
and Atmospheric Administration's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in
Seattle, the U.S. Army's Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in
Hanover, N.H., and the Japanese Marine Science and Technology Center
in Yokosuka City.
NSF Science Expert: Neil Swanberg, (703) 292-8029, nswanber@nsf.gov
Principal Investigator: James Morison, (206) 543-1394, morison@apl.washington.edu
Media contacts:
Peter West (703) 292-7761 / pwest@nsf.gov
Sandra Hines, University of Washington, (206) 543-2580 / shines@u.washington.edu
John Sanders, Naval Postgraduate School, (831) 656-3346 / jfsander@nps.navy.mil
Stephen Swanson, Oregon State University, (541) 737-0789 / Stephen.swanson@orst.edu
For more information about the North Pole Environmental
Observatory, see: http://psc.apl.washington.edu/northpole/
Personnel from the University of Washington break down the mooring camp erected as part of the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 739KB)
Materials used to build the mooring camp at the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory await loading aboard a helicopter for return to the United States.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 776KB)
An oceanographic buoy deployed by Tim Stanton, of the Naval Postgraduate School, and others like it, will drift for a year in the Arctic Ocean, gathering data as part of the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 578KB)
|
|
Principal Investigator James Morison, of the University of Washington, takes water samples from the Arctic Ocean near the North Pole. The sampling is one of several measurements taken annually as part of the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory project.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 644KB)
A winch at the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory is used to retrieve a mooring that has been collecting oceanographic data from the Arctic Ocean for a year.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 787KB)
James Osse, a University of Washington field engineer, skims ice from the surface of a hole used to retrieve a deep-sea mooring at the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 528KB)
Principal Investigator James Morison, of the University of Washington, confers with a field technician about the retrieval of a deep-sea mooring at the National Science Foundation's North Pole Environmental Observatory.
Photo Credit: Peter West/National Science Foundation
Select image for larger version
(Size: 801KB)
Larger versions
(Total Size: 4,853KB)
of all images from this document
Note
About Images
|