Support for your research

The main facility has laboratories, offices, workshops, lecture halls, greenhouses, experimental gardens, warehouses and a meteorological station. Outside the station area, there are five field cabins in different locations in Abisko.

Study

On the first floor and ground floor of the A building there are offices that can be assigned to specific research projects. The use of these offices is planned seasonally by the station management.

Battery storage

Due to new regulations, storage, handling, and charging of lithium batteries (10 Ah or more) is prohibited inside the station. These batteries must be stored in a designated area.

Library

Smaller scientific library with a focus on the polar regions. You may use the library as a quiet workspace.

Contact us if you need

  • access to own office
  • store samples at the station
  • store equipment at the station
  • store batteries at the station
  • space in lab
  • access to workshop
  • specific help from the station's technicians

If you need any of the above, state this in your application.

Cars

The station has three cars for hire: two station wagons and a minibus. Car hire can be booked on-site at reception. Please coordinate the use of the cars so that as many people as possible can have access to them. These cars are intended to be booked daily, so if you need guaranteed access to a car or for a longer period during your visit, we recommend renting a car at Kiruna Airport.

Minibus: Diesel drive, manual gearbox, with room for 9 people.

Skoda passenger car: Electric drive, automatic gearbox.

Volvo passenger car: Electric drive, automatic gearbox.

Volvo passenger car: Electric drive, automatic gearbox.

Boat taxi

When researching the north side or on Torneträsk, there is access to a cabin boat driven by our technicians. You can book directly via our technicians.

Field equipment

Field cabins

Freezes

Contact the station staff if you need to store samples at the station. The station offers temporary storage in freezers (+4, -20 and -80°C), which are regularly inventoried.

Lecture halls

The old lecture hall, which can accommodate about 30 people, is on the entrance floor of the B building. A new, modern lecture hall is located in a separate building on the station grounds (F building). This location can accommodate larger groups of participants and is suitable for both conferences and video conferences.

Experimental gardens

At the station, there are three gardens where short- and long-term experiments can be carried out. Sandboxes are available to delimit the space and individual plant pots. Portable greenhouses can also be used.

The Field Course Handbook is developed and written by staff at the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat in co-operation with experts in the field. Published 2020. ISBN paperback, 978-91-519-5130-0. ISBN pdf online version, 978-91-519-5131-7.

Storage

If you wish to leave equipment behind for the next season, plenty of unheated space and some heated space are available. Contact the staff if you need to store equipment at the station.

Helicopter

During large parts of the year, helicopters are available for charter in the Abisko area.

Conference rooms

The old lecture hall, which can accommodate about 30 people, is on the entrance floor of the B building. A new, modern lecture hall is located in a separate building on the station grounds (F building). This location can accommodate larger groups of participants and is suitable for both conferences and video conferences.

 

The B-house has four rooms upstairs that can accommodate up to eight people each. There is also a video conference room on the ground floor with remote meeting equipment for 12-14 people. You are welcome to use these spaces for office work unless they are booked for conferences or similar purposes.

Refrigerators

Contact the station staff if you need to store samples at the station. The station offers temporary storage in refrigerators/cold rooms (+4°C) and freezers which are regularly inventoried. There is a locked refrigerator (+4°C) intended for clean, odorless and contamination-sensitive samples.

Remember to label and register the things you want to keep. At the end of the season (late October/early November), we inventory all storage areas. Unmarked or unregistered items can then be destroyed! If you need dry ice, we can help you order it.

Laboratories and equipment

There are approximately 25 laboratories at the station, including general laboratories, geoscience laboratory/soil laboratory, instrument laboratory, isotope laboratory, chemistry laboratory, limnology laboratory, microbial laboratory, microscope laboratory, water chemistry laboratory and plant laboratory.

Meeting rooms

The B-building has four rooms on the upper floor that can accommodate up to eight people each. There is also a video conference room on the ground floor with remote meeting equipment for 12-14 people. You are welcome to use these spaces for office work unless they are booked for conferences or similar purposes.

Parking

Parking spaces are available in the station area. There are no engine heaters or charging posts for electric cars.

Mail and parcels

Mail and packages sent to researchers at the station are sorted into mailboxes and mail shelves at our main entrance.

Reception

The reception is staffed on weekdays, excluding weekends. If no one is there, there is a bell to contact the staff.

Remember to label and register the things you want to keep. At the end of the season (late October/early November), we inventory all storage areas. Unmarked or unregistered items can then be destroyed! If you need dry ice, we can help you order it.

Snowmobiles

At the station there are two snowmobiles with sleds. These are booked directly via our technicians and may only be driven by the station's staff.

Drying room

A room where samples can be left to dry for up to several weeks. This can be booked on site.

Technical service

Together, the station's technicians have a very broad competence. Smaller tasks, depending on time, are free of charge. Indicate in your application if you need more extensive help.

Workshops

The station has car, metal, wood, paint, and electronics workshops, which guests can access after the technicians instruct them.