The Canada-Sweden Arctic Ocean 2026 expedition has now begun! Since we will be far north in the Arctic Ocean when it is time for the Swedish election, the expedition began with organised overseas voting, giving everyone eligible to vote in the Swedish election the opportunity to cast their vote. All the votes were then transported from I/B Oden to Longyearbyen, where an agent is arranging for the envelopes to be posted to the Swedish Election Authority.

We then had the customary safety briefing and left Adventfjorden to meet up with the Canadian icebreaker Louis S. St. Laurent, which will be our companion for the coming weeks.

The two icebreakers are now heading north together towards the North Pole, and we are longing for the ice so that we can escape the swells that cause I/B Oden to slam into the troughs with such force that it feels as though the walls might crack. The researchers will have to wait before installing measuring instruments and unpacking, as the risk of damage to the equipment is high as long as we are in open water.

Åsa Lindgren
Expedition Coordinator