Dozens of scientists are sitting in quarantine, waiting for permission to sail forth and capture a crucial moment in the polar calendar that’s essential to their year-long Arctic research mission.
As our planet changes, so do the falls, which can affect wildlife and nearby villages.BERLIN -- They prepared for icy cold and trained to be on the watch for polar bears, but a pandemic just wasn't part of the program.
News of the pandemic caused jitters among those already on board, said Matthew Shupe, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Colorado and co-leader of the MOSAiC expedition. That upcoming rendezvous will force the Polarstern to abandon its current position for three weeks at a critical time in the Arctic cycle.
Adding to the problem is the fact that the sea ice is cracking up and moving about earlier than anticipated, a sign of possible future changes to the Arctic if global warming continues. Shupe said the measurements that scientists were able to perform during the long Arctic winter will improve the models they use to calculate how snow insulates sea ice and affects the movement of energy.
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