On April 28th, the icebreaker Oden will depart from a Swedish port for the research expedition called ARTofMELT 2023 in the Arctic Ocean. The researchers will study the arrival of spring in the Arctic and the beginning of the melting season.
Martin Jansson is a new IT technician at the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat's department for ship-based research support on the icebreaker Oden.
Creating team spirit and preparing participants for the environment in Antarctica are important aspects of the field courses organized by the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat. In March 2023, the participants had the opportunity to practice outdoor living in a cold environment by collectively setting up a field camp and spending the night outdoors in tents and arks.
In March, it is still low season at Abisko Scientific Research Station. About ten researchers have been on-site during the winter, but the number gradually increases during the spring.
During this year's Arctic expedition with the icebreaker Oden, the researchers want to document the transition between winter and summer. This goal requires flexible planning and, based on weather forecasts, being able to move Oden to places where warm air enters the Arctic.
The artist Ida Rödén will participate in this year's research expedition with the icebreaker Oden. Along for the ride is Jonas Falck, a fictional scientist who considered himself one of Carl von Linné's apostles ‒ but was never accepted by Linné. Ida Rödén has explored the world with Jonas Falck since 2014. She has sometimes thought that the work with the scientist is over. But every time she has set a point and shifted focus, something new has begun to loom. The exploration continues, and this time, the two companions will visit the Arctic Ocean.
