0 projects

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

The effect of grubbing and heavy winter rainfall on mycorrhizal mycelium production

Mycorrhizal fungi play a crucial role for both plant nitrogen uptake and ecosystem carbon dynamics and storage. Most of the stored carbon in Arctic soils could be derived from mycorrhizal mycelium rather than from plant litter. As the Arctic carbon storage is suspected to be a crucial factor for ...

Awarded: NOK 51,999

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

The role of vegetation distribution on facies architectural and sequence stratigraphic development of the Palaeocene Firkanten Formation.

The study focuses on how coastal environments control or are controlled by vegetation distribution; collectively, these are particularly sensitive to climate change, with the geomorphology and position of the shoreline being closely linked with local hydrology and associated vegetation distributi...

Awarded: NOK 63,840

Project Period: 2024-2025

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Who is where? - Unravelling the biodiversity of sympagic meiofauna in and around Svalbard

Sympagic (=ice) meiofauna is an indispensable part of a very complex food web in the Arctic, playing a crucial role for many ice-associated organisms and the whole Arctic ecosystem since sympagic meiofauna comprise primarily of larval stages of seafloor and open-water living animals. But Arctic s...

Awarded: NOK 50,443

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Improving Snow Data Assimilation with Satellite Altimetry

Despite its vital role in modulating the energy and water balance budget, snow distributions in time and space remain poorly understood. The project aim is to improve the current snow data assimilation state-of-the-art methods by adding snow depth observations from the satellite altimeter ICESat-...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Oslo

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Calanus species complexity in the transitional fjord system Isfjorden: from cold Arctic to warm Atlantic climate.

The West Spitsbergen Current carries warm and salty Atlantic water (AW) northwards, and with high input of AW, more Calanus finmarchicus is transported to the Arctic. Isfjorden is strongly impacted by Atlantic inflow and is ice-free year-round, except the innermost part, Billefjorden, with a sha...

Awarded: NOK 0.11 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2025

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Arctic CH4 consumption responses to future vegetation regimes, RiS ID: 11990

The Arctic tundra is currently undergoing rapid changes with thawing permafrost and changing vegetation. One of the most pronounced effects among the vegetation is a shift towards taller plant communities and higher biomass, which can lead to increased evapotranspiration and drier soils. Methane ...

Awarded: NOK 79,999

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Investigation of the mercury cycle in the Arctic snowpack for model development (ris id: 12321)

The aim of this project is to investigate the processes involving mercury (Hg) at the snow-air interface in the polar regions. The dynamic exchange of Hg between the snow surface and the overlaying atmosphere in polar regions is not fully understood and not yet constrained into the one-dimensiona...

Awarded: NOK 0.11 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Troms - Romsa - Tromssa

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Hornsund’s and Storfjorden DOM Data Acquisition Campaign and Virtual Field Guide Development for Educational Research. RiS ID - 12339

This project aim to perform a systematic digitalization of eastern Spitsbergen coast, due to its excellent cretaceous sediments' exposures, and western Barentsøya-Edgeøya for their important HALIP exposures. Collecting these types of data from Hornsund’s and Storfjorden’s surroundings can provid...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Unravelling biogeochemical,microbial and vegetation feedbacks driving soil development and Arctic greening under a warming climate,RIS 11961

With the help of this smaller project that is part of the Arctic Greening project (RIS 11961), I want to find out if and how the Arctic cushion plant Silene acaulis adapts to different climatic conditions. For this, I have already genetic material in form of leaves from several populations across...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Trøndelag - Trööndelage

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Autumn leaf senescence in tundra plants: Do soil nutrients and plant-internal nutrient sinks influence timing? (RiS ID: 12335)

Plant growth season in Arctic regions is currently undergoing changes, with spring advancement across the Arctic. However, there is limited knowledge regarding any corresponding trends in the autumn season, where the timing of end-of-season is mostly unaccounted for. It is important that we take ...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2025

Location: Troms - Romsa - Tromssa

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

S2S : Snowfall to Surging ? The role of Snow-Firn-Ice Heat Transfer on Glacier Dynamics

Studying the Heer Land region of Svalbard, our research addresses uncertainties surrounding global glacier contributions to sea level rise, as emphasized in the 2023 IPCC report. Svalbard’s exceptional vulnerability to climate change makes it a critical location for understanding future impacts o...

Awarded: NOK 94,999

Project Period: 2024-2025

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Unruly Ground: Knowing and Caring for Permafrost

Since the 2000s, permafrost has experienced a remarkable revival, and many are invested in preventing the deterioration of this Arctic ground. But while there is an increase in research on the impacts of permafrost degradation, we know very little about the inner workings of permafrost expertise....

Awarded: NOK 71,999

Project Period: 2024-2025

Location: Oslo

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

PEbbles, ice and TalitroidS – checking overlooked beaches in the frame of autecology - RiS ID 12381

The project involves researchers part of both Amphipodologists group and editors for the Worls Registrer of Marine Species (WoRMS); for tighter collaboration and extension towards the ecology of sandy shores, it intends: To check for presence of talitroid amphipods on polar cobble beaches and as ...

Awarded: NOK 94,999

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Vestland

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Evaluating the maximum photosynthetic depth limit using coralline algae as a model organism, RiS ID 12351

This master’s thesis aims to better understand polar ecosystems by shedding light on the photosynthetic limitations of red coralline algae. We will use a mini remotely operated vehicle (Blueye X3) with a grabber attachment to locate and sample coralline algae from Van Mijenfjorden. We will collec...

Awarded: NOK 42,342

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Trøndelag - Trööndelage

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Active Scattering in Sea Ice for Measuring Internal Properties

Sea ice is filled with small brine pockets because the salt is rejected by the crystal lattice during the freezing process. These brine pockets have a significant influence on several aspects of sea ice, including its bearing capacity, the remote sensing of it, as well as the amount of solar ener...

Awarded: NOK 25,805

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Monitoring Active Layer Thickness from Space – Creating a Validation Dataset around Ny-Ålesund, RiD ID 12361

The active layer thickness is one of the most important variables characterizing the state of permafrost, but we still lack the possibility to determine it over large areas, especially from satellites. Seasonal thawing and freezing cycles of the active layer cause the ground surface to heave in w...

Awarded: NOK 0.10 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Oslo

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Monitoring seawater CO2 release from thawing permafrost mobilized by Bayelva proglacial stream, RiS ID 11654

The Bayelva river (Kongsfjorden, Svalbard) represents a key site where to unearth the patterns of carbon release from thawing permafrost into coastal waters. For this reason on September 2023 the Institute of Polar Sciences of the National Research Council (ISP-CNR) of Italy, in the framework of ...

Awarded: NOK 0.10 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Troms - Romsa - Tromssa

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

The transition from ductile to brittle deformation in pre-Devonian basement of the Billefjorden Fault Zone, Svalbard (RiS: 12317)

The Billefjorden Fault Zone (BFZ) is a N-S striking regional-scale long-lived lineament cropping out in central Spitsbergen. This lineament exposes multi-deformational evolution that initiated with ductile deformation preserved in the metamorphic basement. Following several phases of brittle def...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

DyNAflow: Colonisation dynamics of Arctic endemics across glacial landscapes

Warming in the Arctic is causing glacial retreat, which exposes deglaciated terrains to biotic colonisation. Ecological studies can provide insights into the local processes (microclimate, biotic interactions) driving the development of soil communities after glacier retreat. However, community d...

Awarded: NOK 0.10 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

The importance of observation error in reindeer population modelling (RiS ID 12376)

My project explores the intricate dynamics of Svalbard reindeer (R. t. platyrhynchus) populations in response to rapid climate change. Through fieldwork, including paired observations of various populations based in Reindalen, Adventdalen, and Ny-Ålesund, I aim to investigate the nuanced impacts ...

Awarded: NOK 45,913

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Trøndelag - Trööndelage

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Bryophyte diversity as a driver of ecosystem functions and processes in a changing tundra, attached to the ITEX experiment, RiS ID: 10030

Studying bryophyte diversity in the high Arctic, like Svalbard, is vital due to their resilience in extreme conditions. Mosses are pioneers in colonizing newly exposed areas, offering insight into ecosystem health. They act as carbon sinks and regulate the hydrological cycle, which is crucial for...

Awarded: NOK 70,999

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Space use by marine mammals in Svalbard and potential dietary changes due to climate change.

Investigating behaviour of high trophic predators is a fundemental part to understand the ecosystem as they function as a key component through top-down effect. Harbour seal (Phoca vitulina), one of a high trophic predators in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard is experiencing dramatic environmental changes ...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Troms - Romsa - Tromssa

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Shallow marine prokaryote ecosystems in the Boreal Ocean during the Permo-Triassic climate crisis and their recovery (RiS ID: 12307)

Lipid biomarker samples will be collected to reconstruct the microbial community and environmental conditions during the Late Permian mass extinction and in its aftermath with a focus on the recovery of the microbial ecosystem. The samples will complement the existing biomarker record that is con...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

The Heer Land overabundance of Thermal-switch surges

Glaciers around the world are losing mass at an accelerated rate (Hugonnet et al., 2021), and Svalbard experiences this even faster than the global average, largely due to its strong interaction with warm Atlantic ocean currents (Piechura and Walczowski, 2009). The latest IPCC reports present mod...

Awarded: NOK 0.11 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2025

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Snowdrift at the solar park of Isfjord Radio, RiS ID 12308

The adaptation of renewable energy in the Arctic requires knowledge of the Arctic climate's influence on energy installations such as solar panels. Therefore, snowdrift is investigated at the recently installed solar photovoltaic array at Isfjord Radio. For this, observations from a weather stati...

Awarded: NOK 54,784

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Spatio-temporal habitat use of Svalbard reindeer (RiS ID 12152)

Forståelsen av Svalbardreinens Habitat: Klimaendringer og Vår Forskning Introduksjon Arktis er et av de mest skjøre miljøene på jorden, og det opplever raske endringer på grunn av klimaendringer. Svalbard, en øygruppe i Arktis, varmes opp raskere enn nesten noe annet sted. Dette gjør det til et v...

Awarded: NOK 0.11 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Svalbard

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Studies of environmental pollutants in wetland areas and water ponds on the Arctic tundra

The main goal for this project is to continue our study further the role of birds in transporting pollutants to and within the Arctic area, and to bring new knowledge especially linked to potential transport between the marine and terrestrial system including wetlands and water ponds on the tundr...

Awarded: NOK 38,673

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Trøndelag - Trööndelage

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Particulate matter in glacier fed rivers

The aim of this project is a extensive study of particulate matter released into the rivers from the glacier systems and entering the Kongsfjorden system in Ny-Ålesund. Both particulate matter and river water will be collected at the outlet from the glaciers main melting channel as well as in th...

Awarded: NOK 38,591

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Trøndelag - Trööndelage

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Underwater Hyperspectral Imaging for Under-Ice Navigation, RiS ID 12349

Underwater Hyperspectral Imaging (UHI) is a groundbreaking innovation that expands our ability to capture a wide range of wavelengths beyond human perception. This technology offers a comprehensive view of the electromagnetic spectrum, allowing us to identify and analyze subtle differences in the...

Awarded: NOK 0.12 mill.

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Trøndelag - Trööndelage

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

The nutrient legacy of reindeer carrion in vegetation in the Arctic tundra of Svalbard, RiS ID:11512

Carcass legacy effects on soil chemistry and vegetation nutrient composition will help our understanding of how local ‘disturbances’ (i.e. carcass presence) scale to structuring and functioning of ecological communities at landscape levels. I will revisit carcasses of varying ages and collect abo...

Awarded: NOK 56,999

Project Period: 2024-2024

Location: Nordland - Nordlánnda