On August 18, Juliet Lattaud and Flor Vermassens will set off on a research expedition to southeast Greenland aboard ATKA, a 16-meter sailing vessel equipped for scientific work. The boat is operated by the French organization Timoine Polaire and accommodates five people, including two researchers.
“I’m trying to understand the role the ocean plays in glacier melting within the fjord,” says Flor Vermassens at the Department of Geological Sciences.
Thanks to its small size and specialized equipment, ATKA can access narrow, shallow fjords where larger research vessels cannot reach. This allows scientists to study the effects of glacier melt on the ecosystem – up close and on site.
Ocean currents carrying warmer water into the fjords accelerate glacier melting. By gaining deeper insight into this process, the researchers hope to contribute valuable knowledge about how climate change is impacting the Arctic, and how we might address these changes in the future.
The expedition is also carried out with minimal environmental impact.
“With ATKA, we can conduct research in a highly carbon-neutral and cost-effective way,” says Juliet Lattaud at the Department of Environmental Science.
Climate change is speeding up glacier melt, releasing methane and carbon into oceans. This leads to CO2 release via mineralization, contributing to acidification and greenhouse gas emissions. To predict carbon flux impacts on ocean chemistry, we need baseline data on the fate of this material.
