Dossier
North Pole (Arctic) and South Pole (Antarctica)
Our work in the Arctic and Antarctic pole regions has a wide variety of subjects, but has a shared focus on the important role of sea ice in sustaining the rich polar food webs. In this dossier you can find news, backgrounds and results of research of Wageningen University & Research in the North and South Pole region: WUR Polar.
South Pole research (Antarctica)
The work of researchers on Antarctica has a wide variety of subjects, from polar sea to sea ice and from krill to whales. This research is a Statutory Research Task (WOT) we perform for the Dutch ministry. This task follows from the Netherlands' consultative membership in the Antarctic Treaty, the international agreement for shared government of the Antarctic continent and Southern Oceans. Additional support is obtained from the Netherlands Polar Program of the Netherlands Science Foundation and from foreign host countries that kindly support logistics in our cooperative projects.
News about Antarctica
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Antarctica: balancing conservation and tourism in a fragile frontier
- Antarctica is one of the planet’s last truly pristine regions. Beyond the focus of scientists, the continent has largely remained untouched, serving as a peaceful haven for countless species. However, tourism to the area has surged tenfold since the 1990s. Researchers Machiel Lamers, Daniela Cajiao, and Anisja Obermann study the impact of tourism and scientific activities on the fragile ecosystem, aiming to develop science-based solutions. During the Christmas Holidays, Cajiao and Obermann will conduct fieldwork in Antarctica to develop alternatives for managing the increasing flows of tourists and the associated impacts. How does their research inform policy solutions? -
From idea to breakthrough: twenty years of SUIT changes polar research
- Researchers from Wageningen Marine Research and partners, including the Alfred Wegener Institute, returned in September from an expedition to the central Arctic Ocean on board RV Polarstern. During this trip, they collected samples to continue research on Arctic cod and learn more about the distribution of fish in this area, following up on a previous EU research project. To do this, the Polarstern went deep into the Arctic Ocean and reached the geographic North Pole. For sampling, the researchers used several methods, including the Surface and Under-Ice Trawl (SUIT), which allows sampling of the surface water and the underside of sea ice. This instrument marked its 20th anniversary during the expedition. -
Surface water sampling reveals large numbers of juvenile krill undetected by conventional monitoring methods
- In 2018/2019, researchers of Wageningen Marine Research joined the Japanese research vessel Kaiyo-maru (Fisheries Agency Japan; FAJ) on an Antarctic expedition to sample the upper surface waters with the Surface and Under Ice Trawl. Results showed that a large part of the Antarctic krill population resided in the upper two meters of the water column.
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Rare whale species observed during recent Antarctic expedition
- Research by Wageningen Marine Research and partners on the relationship between sea ice and the Southern Ocean food web investigates various components of that food web, including the so-called ‘top predators’, or seabirds and marine mammals. To map their numbers and distribution, observers count these animals during Antarctic expeditions. During the latest expedition, on board the German icebreaker Polarstern in the southern autumn of 2022, an unusual species of whale was observed: the Arnoux's beaked whale. -
Diet young polar cod more varied than previously assumed
- Earlier research by Wageningen Marine research (WMR) and partners, including the German Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), showed that many juvenile polar cod live close to the sea ice of the central Arctic Ocean, feeding partly on organisms that also live in and under the sea ice. Because of the difficulty in catching these fish, there are few studies looking at their diet. A new publication in the scientific ‘Journal of Fish Biology’ compares the diet of fish caught during different expeditions on board icebreaker Polarstern. This provides a more complete picture of their food sources in the central Arctic Ocean, which can contribute to nature management and fisheries policy in this area. -
Leeuwarden centre of Antarctic scientific consultation
- The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) holds an annual three-week meeting on the Southern Ocean around Antarctica. This year, scientists from around the world are meeting in Leeuwarden to discuss fisheries policy and nature management in this area. Fokje Schaafsma, researcher at Wageningen Marine Research, participates in these discussions. -
ANTARC-SHIP project: Exploring Environmental Stewardship in the Context of Tourism and Science
- ENP researchers, Machiel Lamers and Daniela Cajiao, have recently returned from their 6 week Antarctic expedition. The purpose of their fieldwork was to explore and assess Environmental Stewardship practices (i.e., the practices, technologies and management approaches we deploy to minimize our environmental footprint or to protect the environment) in the context of tourism, science, and logistical operations in Antarctica. -
ANTARC-SHIP Environmental Stewardship in Antarctic Tourism
- The aim of the ANTARC-SHIP project is to examine to what extent, and how, environmental stewardship can be assessed, enhanced, and facilitated among the different actors and institutions involved in the operation and governance of Antarctic tourism. Discover, in detail, the various work packages of this project. -
Anticipatory governance of solar geoengineering and other risky technologies and activities: Key challenges and ways forward
- Solar geoengineering refers to a set of speculative technologies that have the potential to reflect some incoming sunlight back out into space, as a way to counteract the adverse effects of anthropogenic climate change. How are such speculative and potentially highly risky technologies being governed, in an anticipatory manner? -
Nico van den Brink appointed as personal professor of Environmental Toxicology
- The Executive Board has appointed Nico van den Brink as personal professor of Environmental Toxicology in the Toxicology chair group of Wageningen University & Research (WUR). Van den Brink has been working for the Toxicology chair group since 2014 and heads the environmental toxicology group there. The group's research focuses on among others birds and mammals and also on marine cockles and fruit flies. Where they dive into the possible effects of substances on behavior and the immune system of these animals.
Projects about Antarctica
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ANTARC-SHIP: Fostering environmental stewardship among Antarctic tourism governance actors and institutions
- The aim of the ANTARC-SHIP project is to examine to what extent, and how, environmental stewardship can be assessed, enhanced, and facilitated among the different actors and institutions involved in the operation and governance of Antarctic tourism. -
Fungi in boreal peatlands and polar regio
- Fungi play a significant role in terrestrial ecosystem functioning as the main decomposers of the organic matter in soils and peatlands. Arctica and Antarctica contain permafrost and extreme conditions for life. A better understanding of the fungal diversity and functional roles in permafrost soils and peatlands is needed to better predict how these ecosystems will respond to climate change. Our interests are focused on studying the biodiversity role of fungi in the polar regions and boreal peatlands.
Alfred Wegener Institut
Read the book
Publications
Video's about Antarctica
The Petrels
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Ice net SUIT
During the expeditions, the researchers are fishing with the ice net SUIT (Surface and Under Ice Trawl - SUIT). With this gear, the top layer of the water under the ice can be examined.
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North Pole research (Arctic)
With the receding sea-ice in the Arctic, an increase in human activities
such as shipping, oil and gas exploration, fisheries and tourism is
expected in this region. Wageningen University & Research conducts
impact assessments of these activities. This is needed to identify
relevant mitigation measures to minimise impacts of these activities and
to give advice to governments, industry and NGOs on sustainable
developments in the Arctic.
News about Arctic research
-
From idea to breakthrough: twenty years of SUIT changes polar research
- Researchers from Wageningen Marine Research and partners, including the Alfred Wegener Institute, returned in September from an expedition to the central Arctic Ocean on board RV Polarstern. During this trip, they collected samples to continue research on Arctic cod and learn more about the distribution of fish in this area, following up on a previous EU research project. To do this, the Polarstern went deep into the Arctic Ocean and reached the geographic North Pole. For sampling, the researchers used several methods, including the Surface and Under-Ice Trawl (SUIT), which allows sampling of the surface water and the underside of sea ice. This instrument marked its 20th anniversary during the expedition. -
Rare whale species observed during recent Antarctic expedition
- Research by Wageningen Marine Research and partners on the relationship between sea ice and the Southern Ocean food web investigates various components of that food web, including the so-called ‘top predators’, or seabirds and marine mammals. To map their numbers and distribution, observers count these animals during Antarctic expeditions. During the latest expedition, on board the German icebreaker Polarstern in the southern autumn of 2022, an unusual species of whale was observed: the Arnoux's beaked whale. -
Diet young polar cod more varied than previously assumed
- Earlier research by Wageningen Marine research (WMR) and partners, including the German Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), showed that many juvenile polar cod live close to the sea ice of the central Arctic Ocean, feeding partly on organisms that also live in and under the sea ice. Because of the difficulty in catching these fish, there are few studies looking at their diet. A new publication in the scientific ‘Journal of Fish Biology’ compares the diet of fish caught during different expeditions on board icebreaker Polarstern. This provides a more complete picture of their food sources in the central Arctic Ocean, which can contribute to nature management and fisheries policy in this area. -
Leeuwarden centre of Antarctic scientific consultation
- The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) holds an annual three-week meeting on the Southern Ocean around Antarctica. This year, scientists from around the world are meeting in Leeuwarden to discuss fisheries policy and nature management in this area. Fokje Schaafsma, researcher at Wageningen Marine Research, participates in these discussions. -
The reasons behind the rapid warming of the North Pole
- The North Pole region heats up faster than the rest of the world. Though this is a known fact, climate models underestimate the speed with which the region warms up. Sjoert Barten obtained his PhD on this subject at Wageningen University & Research on 26 April. -
Combination microscopy and DNA analysis reveals new insights in the diet of polar cod
- Polar cod is an important part of the food web of the Arctic. Sarah Maes (KU Leuven) and Fokje Schaafsma (Wageningen Marine Research) investigated the diet of polar cod from the Barents Sea, with the help of colleagues from the KU Leuven and the Alfred Wegener Institute. They did this by combining traditional microscopy with DNA analysis. The study resulted in new insights regarding the diet of polar cod which are now published in the scientific journal Marine Ecology Progress Series. -
Plastic and debris in Arctic fox poo in Iceland
- Recently, researchers associated with Wageningen Marine Research published an article in the scientific journal Polar Biology, where they discuss anthropogenic debris in Arctic fox faeces from Iceland. Samples from different decennia show that plastic has been ingested since the 1990’s but that frequencies of such uptake are low. -
Using eyes in the sky to locate seals in a rapidly changing Arctic
- The polar regions are some of the most inaccessible places of our planet. Figuring out where different seal species reside in this fast-changing environment is challenging. Researchers from the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea research (NIOZ), Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and Aeria visited the waters around Svalbard, Norway, to make high resolution drone images of different species of seals.
Projects about the Arctic
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Arctic Marine Litter Project
- Take a moment to visualise the Arctic: icebergs, snow-capped mountains, polar bears, walruses...But the truth is quite the opposite. Many of the beaches in the European Arctic are littered, and the most abundant type of litter is plastic. -
Sustainable Arctic Resource Use
- This project aims to analyse the use of information in natural resource governance and management in the Arctic region.
