MOSAiC Expedition

MOSAiC

Embark on the largest polar expedition in history: in September 2019, the German research icebreaker Polarstern set sail from Tromsø, Norway, to spend a year drifting through the Arctic Ocean - trapped in ice. The goal of the MOSAiC expedition was to take the closest look ever at the Arctic as the epicenter of global warming and to gain fundamental insights that are key to better understand global climate change. Hundreds of researchers from 20 countries were involved in this exceptional endeavour. Following in the footsteps of Fridtjof Nansen's ground-breaking expedition with his wooden sailing ship Fram in 1893-1896, the MOSAiC expedition brought a modern research icebreaker close to the north pole for a full year including for the first time in polar winter. The data gathered will be used by scientists around the globe to take climate research to a completely new level. Led by atmospheric scientist Markus Rex, and co-led by Klaus Dethloff and Matthew Shupe, MOSAiC is spearheaded by Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI).

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MOSAiC

Embark on the largest polar expedition in history: in September 2019, the German research icebreaker Polarstern will set sail from Tromsø, Norway, to spend a year drifting through the Arctic Ocean - trapped in ice.

See expedition

See science

The goal of the MOSAiC expedition is to take the closest look ever at the Arctic as the epicenter of global warming and to gain fundamental insights that are key to a better understanding of global climate change. Hundreds of researchers from 20 countries are involved in this exceptional endeavour. Following in the footsteps of Fridtjof Nansens ground-breaking expedition with his wooden sailing ship Fram in 1893-1896, the MOSAiC expedition will bring a modern research icebreaker close to the north pole for the first time in polar winter. The data gathered will be used by scientists around the globe to take climate and ecosystem research to a completely new level. Led by atmospheric scientist Markus Rex, and co-led by Klaus Dethloff and Matthew Shupe, MOSAiC is spearheaded by Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI).

May 21, 2019

May 21, 2019

Stories

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September 4, 2024

September 4, 2024

Press release by AWI

Photosynthesis in near darkness – Research team publishes new results of the MOSAiC project

March 28, 2024

March 28, 2024

Short Message by AWI

The International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) has honored Markus Rex, Matthew Shupe and Klaus Dethloff with the Award for Service 2024.

September 29, 2023

September 29, 2023

Nature

A MOSAiC publication is on the cover of Nature Geosciences

Cover reproduced with permission from Springer Nature.

October 17, 2022

October 17, 2022

Press release by AWI

Antje Boetius and Markus Rex accept Arctic Circle Prize

Alfred Wegener Institute and MOSAiC expedition receive award

October 17, 2022

October 17, 2022

University of East Anglia

New dataset reveals biological “treasure trove” of Arctic Ocean

A major new project will help benchmark biodiversity change in the Arctic Ocean and guide conservation efforts by identifying unique species and assessing their extinction risk.