As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, the resulting geopolitical tensions may impact our ability to understand ongoing ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More change. A recent study published in Nature Climate ChangeAccording to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, climate change is change in the climate of the whole Earth or a region of the Earth that is believed... More by INTERACT, a network of research stations in the ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More, sheds light on the potential implications that such prolonged conflict may have on our current (and future) perspective over one of the world’s most sensitive and dynamically changing regions.
The harsh and understudied ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More is exposed to the most rapid climatic changes on the globe. Our understanding of the implications of such changes relies heavily on ground-based observations from research stations scattered across the vast and remote region. By examining the representativeness of the most extensive research station network of the Northern Hemisphere, INTERACT (https://eu-interact.org/), López-Blanco and colleagues examined how the ongoing war in Ukraine and the exclusion of Russia from international fora, may bias our view on ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More change.
“Our study reveals that although an intact INTERACT network consistently shows biases in such key ecosystemAll the living organisms (including people) in an area as well as its physical environment, functioning together as a unit. An ecosystem is made up of plants, animals, microorganisms, soil,... More variables, the exclusion of the Russian stations severely increases this bias”, says Dr. Efrén López-Blanco (Aarhus University, Denmark), lead author of the study.
Based on this recent study, the potential loss of Russian research stations could adversely affect the capacity to track global ecological responses to climate changeAccording to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, climate change is change in the climate of the whole Earth or a region of the Earth that is believed... More including permafrostPermafrost is frozen ground that remains at or below zero degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit) for two or more years. It forms in regions where the mean annual temperature is... More degradation, vegetation shifts, and carbon emissions. “Excluding Russian research stations and all the ground-based knowledge they may provide, represents a shift in baseline conditions that is of the same magnitude as the anticipated climate changeAccording to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, climate change is change in the climate of the whole Earth or a region of the Earth that is believed... More shifts by the end of the century,” concludes Efrén López-Blanco.
INTERACT is built on international friendships and collaborations that have endured over half a century and even survived the Cold War period. INTERACT collaborates widely with station managers, researchers, IndigenousBelonging to a certain place. Indigenous people are distinct ethnic groups that have historic connections to people who lived in a territory prior to the area being colonized or coming... More and local people to observe, understand and respond to environmental change. INTERACT reaches out to Governments, the public and students around the World. However, its geographical coverage of environments and ecosystems is challenged by current geopolitical tensions. “INTERACT has now quantified the resulting bias in our understanding of ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More ecosystems – and the bias is serious,” says Professor Terry V. Callaghan CMG, Founder and Science Coordinator of INTERACT and Associate Professor Margareta Johansson, Coordinator of INTERACT.
A circumarcticAround or encircling the Arctic, as in the environmental and/or administrative regions that surround the Arctic.... More distributed observing network is important for documenting and understanding arcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More change. “INTERACT brings together managers of existing research stations to improve the services and facilities needed to study arcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More ecosystems and address local, national and global challenges. Collaborative long-term monitoring, experimental research and integration of indigenousBelonging to a certain place. Indigenous people are distinct ethnic groups that have historic connections to people who lived in a territory prior to the area being colonized or coming... More and local knowledge is key to understanding changes and their consequences for people living in the ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More,” explains Morten Rasch, Chairman, INTERACT Station Manager Forum.
International efforts are therefore needed to close the geographical knowledge gap – a gap that existed before the Ukraine conflict, but now has grown to a crevasseA crack or fissure in a glacier or or ice sheet* (Note that a crevice is a fissure in rock).... More. “The study shows the importance of a geographically representative network of observing sites if we want to understand current and projected changes in the ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More. To improve the observational capacity in the ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More, INTERACT welcomes members that fulfil three criteria: Housing facilities open for external scientists, a monitoring programme and intended long-term operation of the facility,” states Elmer Topp-Jørgensen, INTERACT Station Manager Forum.
INTERACT is a network of friends with a globally important role: we are in the right place (but less so now with Russian stations on pause), at the right time and with the right skills to observe, understand and respond to rapid environmental changes but our recent study shows we need to restore and even extend our previous geographical coverage of the North through science diplomacy to better protect the ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More and beyond,” elaborates Professor Terry V. Callaghan CMG, Founder and Science Coordinator of INTERACT and Associate Professor Margareta Johansson, INTERACT Coordinator.
The paper “Towards an increasingly biased view on ArcticDefinitions of the Arctic vary according to environmental, geographical, political, cultural and scientific perspectives. Some scientists define the Arctic as areas having a high latitude, long winters, short, cool summers,... More change” published in Nature Climate ChangeAccording to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, climate change is change in the climate of the whole Earth or a region of the Earth that is believed... More can be accessed here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-023-01903-1 (DOI: 10.1038/s41558-023-01903-1).
