BAS-Arctic Working Group
Working Group purpose
The Arctic Working Group is a group of more than 60 BAS scientists and operations staff who are currently working in the Arctic or have aspirations to work there. The AWG was started in 2018 to bring together researchers in different fields to share their experiences of Arctic research, to enable new collaborations, and to maximise the potential output of this group by coordinating efforts and knowledge regarding Arctic projects, funding calls and logistics.
Terms of Reference
Content coming soon
Our priorities
Content coming soon
Arctic marine geophysics
This research focuses on investigating the glacial histories of Arctic ice sheets and ice caps using the marine geological record preserved on continental margins. By reconstructing past ice sheets, their …SDOO
Abrupt warming episodes punctuate Greenland ice core records throughout the last glacial period. These events were first identified in two Greenland stable water isotope records (Dansgaard et al., 1993), and …
Climate and Ice during the Last Interglacial
During the Last Interglacial (129-116 thousand years ago, ka) CO2 and global temperature were both higher than they were before human industrialisation. By examining Last Interglacial climate, we thus gain …
TEA-COSI
TEA_COSI assesses Arctic Sea-ice which has an important impact on currents and ocean circulations around the globe
UKESM-BAS
Reliable projections of the Earth’s climate are at the heart of scientific support for international efforts to address global change. There is increasing recognition that reliable projections require that physical …
ESA IAP ArcticSat project
Situational awareness in the ArcticAerosol-Cloud and Climate interations in the Arctic
Developing a better understanding of cloud and aerosol processes in the Arctic in order to improve climate models.
ICE-ARC
physicists, chemists, biologists, economists, and sociologists from 21 institutes in 11 countries across Europe assess the rapid retreat and collapse of Arctic sea-ice cover
SIOS
Svalbard Integrated Earth Observing System (SIOS) is an international infrastructure project. There are 26 partners from Europe and Asia involved. The essential objective is to establish better coordinated services for …
SEANA
Global shipping is undergoing significant changes. In January 2020 the maximum sulphur emission by ships in international waters will reduce from 3.5% to 0.5% by mass, as a result of …
Data As Art
DATA AS ART is an ongoing science & art project in development at NERC’s British Antarctic Survey (BAS). It visualises science data (in its widest definition), to create stunning and …
ICEMAR
The EC-funded ICEMAR project is a GMES pilot service delivering sea ice information products directly to ships navigating through sea ice in the Arctic.
EISCAT Science Support
The EISCAT science support group is a collaboration between the British Antarctic Survey and the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, funded via the National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) EISCAT, the European …Iceland Greenland seas Project
PI: Ian Renfrew (University of East Anglia) CO-I’s: Tom Bracegirdle, Tom Lachlan-Cope, Alexandra Weiss PDRA’s: Andrew Elvidge (University of East Anglia), James Pope NERC Grant: NE/N009924/1 Project Partners: Robert Pickart …
ACSIS
Major changes are occurring across the North Atlantic climate system: in the ocean and atmosphere temperatures and circulation, in sea ice thickness and extent, and in key atmospheric constituents such …Periphyton diversity in two different Antarctic lakes assessed using metabarcoding
24 September, 2021 by Peter Convey
Antarctic lakes have generally simple periphyton communities when compared with those of lower latitudes. To date, assessment of microbial diversity in Antarctica has relied heavily on traditional direct observation and…Read more on Periphyton diversity in two different Antarctic lakes assessed using metabarcoding
Cross-L* coherence of the outer radiation belt during 2 storms and the role of the plasmapause
17 September, 2021 by Mark Clilverd, Nigel Meredith, Richard Horne, Sarah Glauert
The high energy electron population in Earth’s outer radiation belt is extremely variable, changing by multiple orders of magnitude on timescales that vary from under an hour to several weeks.…
Extinction of austral diatoms in response to large-scale climate dynamics in Antarctica
15 September, 2021 by Bianca Perren, Dominic Hodgson
Despite evidence for microbial endemism, an understanding of the impact of geological and paleoclimate events on the evolution of regional protist communities remains elusive. Here, we provide insights into the…Read more on Extinction of austral diatoms in response to large-scale climate dynamics in Antarctica
Historical biogeography of the Gondwanan freshwater genus Boeckella (Crustacea): Timing and modes of speciation in the Southern Hemisphere
14 September, 2021 by Elisabeth Biersma, Jennifer Jackson, Peter Convey
We investigated evolutionary relationships and biogeographical patterns within the genus Boeckella to evaluate (1) whether its current widespread distribution in the Southern Hemisphere is due to recent long-distance dispersal or…
Influence of heavy metals on the occurrence of Antarctic soil microalgae
13 September, 2021 by Peter Convey
Human- and animal-impacted sites in Antarctica can be contaminated with heavy metals, as well as areas influenced by underlying geology and naturally occurring minerals. The present study examined the relationship…Read more on Influence of heavy metals on the occurrence of Antarctic soil microalgae
New estimation of the NOx snow-source on the Antarctic Plateau
12 September, 2021 by Markus Frey
To fully decipher the role of nitrate photolysis on the atmospheric oxidative capacity in snow-covered regions, NOx flux must be determined with more precision than existing estimates. Here, we introduce…Read more on New estimation of the NOx snow-source on the Antarctic Plateau
Sweepstake reproductive success and collective dispersal produce chaotic genetic patchiness in a broadcast spawner
10 September, 2021 by Lloyd Peck, Michael Meredith, Melody Clark
A long-standing paradox of marine populations is chaotic genetic patchiness (CGP), temporally unstable patterns of genetic differentiation that occur below the geographic scale of effective dispersal. Several mechanisms are hypothesized…Evaluating artisanal fishing of globally threatened sharks and rays in the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh
9 September, 2021 by Rachel Cavanagh
Sharks and rays are at risk of extinction globally. This reflects low resilience to increasing fishing pressure, exacerbated by habitat loss, climate change, increasing value in a trade and inadequate…Anthropogenic debris in an Antarctic Specially Protected Area in the maritime Antarctic
8 September, 2021 by Peter Convey
Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPAs) provide the strongest environmental protection in Antarctica. However, they are not immune from anthropogenic pollution of marine or terrestrial origin. We document anthropogenic debris within…Read more on Anthropogenic debris in an Antarctic Specially Protected Area in the maritime Antarctic
Tunnel valley infill and genesis revealed by high-resolution 3-D seismic data
8 September, 2021 by James Kirkham, Kelly Hogan, Robert Larter
Landforms produced beneath former ice sheets offer insights into inaccessible subglacial processes and present analogues for how current ice masses may evolve in a warming climate. Large subglacial channels cut…Read more on Tunnel valley infill and genesis revealed by high-resolution 3-D seismic data
Liverworts frequently form mycothalli on Spitsbergen in the High Arctic
7 September, 2021 by Kevin Newsham, Will Goodall-Copestake
Mycothalli, symbioses between liverworts and soil fungi, have not previously been recorded in the Arctic. Here, 13 species of leafy liverwort from west Spitsbergen in the High Arctic are examined…Read more on Liverworts frequently form mycothalli on Spitsbergen in the High Arctic
Comparison of kilometre and sub‐kilometre scale simulations of a foehn wind event over the Larsen C Ice Shelf, Antarctic Peninsula using the Met Office Unified Model (MetUM)
6 September, 2021 by Amelie Kirchgaessner, Andrew Orr, John King, Tony Phillips
A foehn event on 27 January 2011 over the Larsen C Ice Shelf (LCIS), Antarctic Peninsula and its interaction with an exisiting ground-based cold-air pool is simulated using the MetUM…External Morphology of Larvae of Belgica antarctica Jacobs, 1900 (Diptera, Chironomidae) Obtained from Two Locations in Maritime Antarctica
3 September, 2021 by Peter Convey
The external morphology of the fourth-instar larva of the Antarctic endemic chironomid midge Belgica antarctica is described. Larvae were collected from Jougla Point (Wiencke Island) and an un-named island close…Ecological succession of fungal and bacterial communities in Antarctic mosses affected by a fairy ring disease
3 September, 2021 by Peter Convey
We evaluated fungal and bacterial diversity in an established moss carpet on King George Island, Antarctica, affected by ‘fairy ring’ disease using metabarcoding. A total of 127 fungal and 706…
Tropical and subtropical forcing of future Southern Hemisphere stationary wave changes
1 September, 2021 by Thomas Bracegirdle
Stationary wave changes play a significant role in the regional climate change response in Southern Hemisphere (SH) winter. In particular, almost all CMIP5 models feature a substantial strengthening of the…Read more on Tropical and subtropical forcing of future Southern Hemisphere stationary wave changes
Drivers of abundance and spatial distribution in Southern Ocean peracarid Crustacea
1 September, 2021 by Huw Griffiths, Katrin Linse
The Southern Ocean (SO) continental shelf and deep sea are environments characterised by different benthic communities. Their structure and composition are driven and shaped by different variables: whilst on the…Read more on Drivers of abundance and spatial distribution in Southern Ocean peracarid Crustacea
Regime behavior in the upper stratosphere as a precursor of stratosphere-troposphere coupling in the northern winter
1 September, 2021 by Hua Lu, John King, Thomas Bracegirdle
A new regime index is constructed to capture the seasonal development of the stratospheric polar vortex in the northern winter, based on the standard deviation of Ertel’s potential vorticity in…
An age scale for the first shallow (sub-)Antarctic ice core from Young Island, Northwest Ross Sea
1 September, 2021 by Dieter Tetzner, Dorothea Moser, Liz Thomas
The climate of the sub-Antarctic is important in understanding the environmental conditions of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. However, regional climate proxy records from this region are scarce. In this…Ocean Mixing: Drivers, Mechanisms and Impacts
1 September, 2021 by Michael Meredith
Ocean Mixing: Drivers, Mechanisms and Impacts contains a broad perspective on the causes of ocean mixing, with a perspective on the implications, in terms of governing ocean circulation, climate, biogeochemistry…
Utilising IPCC assessments to support the ecosystem approach to fisheries management within a warming Southern Ocean
1 September, 2021 by Eugene Murphy, John Turner, Michael Meredith, Philip Hollyman, Phil Trathan, Rachel Cavanagh, Simeon Hill, Susie Grant
Southern Ocean marine ecosystems are highly vulnerable to climate-driven change, the impacts of which must be factored into conservation and management. The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living…
