One of the most extraordinary finds in Svalbard was made during a geology student excursion to Prins Karls Forland in 2004. The jawbone found then is now announced to be the oldest remnant of a polar bear ever discovered.

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SSF has received a report from the Czech research team working in Petuniabukta. Work has been conducted in the fields of botany, zoology and climatology.

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International research teams have studied the breeding biology of little auks and kittiwakes in Svalbard over the last five decades. Now Børge Moen (NINA) and his team compared changes of reproductive pattern in these two species with changes in climate during this period.

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A hovercraft proves invaluable when it comes to access and be mobile in the remote parts of the sea ice-covered Arctic. SABVABAA is moving swiftly along the ice edge and the advanced instrumentation on board allow collecting various type of data.

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A little less than 2% of all red listed species in Norway are in Svalbard. At the moment only mammals, birds, fresh water fish and vascular plants are assessed in Svalbard. Several species are considered endangered.

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After several unsuccessful drilling attempts the team's spirit is up again. In the early December the drill reached depth of 969,8 m and the thick layer of sandstone was found. The rock is porous enough to start tests on its ability to store carbon dioxide in the future. The project continues.

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Upper atmosphere phenomena like northern lights are best studied in polar regions. Aurora is highly spectacular to watch. Shower of solar particles make aurora flicker and interfere with the navigation and communication equipment.

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Not uniform and difficult to access active layer of permafrost, new measurements of water content within the glaciers by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance probe, innovative laser scanning of the calving front, water and snow chemistry studies - these are only few of exciting results obtained this summer in Hornsund.

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Assessing health risk of long-term exposure to environmental contaminants, like DDT and PCBs, is challenging. Heli Routti from the Norwegian Polar Instititute compared two contrasting ringed seal populations. The relationships between contaminant levels, and hormone and vitamin systems were found to be more complex than previously thought.

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Bjørnøya and Sveagruva reached a new record for November with temperatures far above the normal.

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The Norwegian Customs Authorities have introduced risk assessment of cargo exported to non EU countries, Svalbard included. In order to comply with regulation in force Bring Logistics AS is tightening up the rules for declaring goods for export to Svalbard.

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Last week, Svalbard Science Centre opened its doors for Longyearbyens school children. Many of the activities were related to evolution - a tribute to the Darwin year 2009.

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SUMO (Small Unmanned Meteorological Observer) has been used to monitor Arctic Atmospheric Boundary Layer (AABL) in Svalbard. SUMO can perform both vertical and horizontal surveys of the mean meteorological parameters: temperature, relative humidity, pressure and wind.

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NILU scientists have built and tested new ultra-violet imaging camera that can detact emissions of SO2 and provide quantitative estimate of SO2 flux. The test was carried out in Ny-Ålesund where many large cruise ships emit unknown amounts of SO2 into the "pristine" air. The work was funded by Arctic Field Grant.

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Monitoring trekking pattern of Svalbard rock ptarmigan can be a difficult task. Researchers have equipped eight birds with small satellite senders and are able to track the moving patterns also during the polar night.

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Glaciers' inner hydrological systems remain largely unknown. Therefore speleological work delivers precious information and helps creating 3-dimensional maps of glacier englacial and subglacial drainage system. Jason Gulley reports on his work in caves of Rieperbreen, Hansbreen and other glaciers in Svalbard.
 

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Tourism industry can be happy with the support their 3 projects have received from the Svalbard Environmental Fund. Altogether 4,4 mln kroner will be delivered to 23 projects, 14 of which are led by local recipients.

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Inger Greve Alsos from UNIS has collected samples from all known plants in Svalbard. They are being DNA-analysed and barcoded in order to establish what specie each of them belongs to. DNA makes the taxonomy easy.

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Geoscientists have succeeded in reconstructing sea ice cover extend in the past by use of two different fossil algae species found in the sediment cores from Fram Strait. The results show also how rapidly the changes were occurring.

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The invertebrate fauna of Edgeøya has been remained unknown until now. PhD student from UNIS, María Luisa Ávila Jiménez decided to tackle this issue in the summer 2009. Samples were taken to make community comparison studies and phylogeographical analyses.

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This October, two outstanding researchers working in Svalbard were rewarded for their achievements in science: Geir Wing Gabrielsen (NPI) received the Nansen Award and Jørn Hurum (Natural History Museum, University of Oslo) received the Award for Excellence in Communication of Science.

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Svalbard Science Forum, in cooperation with the Norwegian Polar Institute, will award Arctic Field Grants in connection with research projects in Svalbard in 2010.
 

Application deadline: 20 Nov 2009, 4pm.

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