ST. PETERSBURG, July 15. /TASS/. The North Pole 42 Drifting Station has completed scientific research in the Arctic, which continued for almost two years, press service of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) said.
"The North Pole-42 drifting Station of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute has completed scientific work in the Arctic Ocean's high latitudes. Over 21 months, the expedition has traveled 3,540 nautical miles - more than 6,550 kilometers, and scientists have completed a full cycle of comprehensive observations of the Arctic environment," the press service said.
The scientists conducted more than 50 types of observations - their research was in the atmosphere, hydro-biology, oceanography, hydro-chemistry, ice, geophysics, geology, and hydroacoustic directions. Thanks to this work, the scientists managed to obtain unique data from areas where research previously had been extremely rare, Russia's Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology Alexander Kozlov said.
"Such research is of strategic importance for science, environmental monitoring and long-term planning of the Russian Arctic Zone's development," the minister added.
According to AARI's Director Alexander Makarov, obtained data will be used to understand natural changes in the Arctic. "Understanding exactly what is happening in this region may be possible only when we have systematic field observations. As we can see now, despite the noticeable warming and the summer ice cover shrinking in the Arctic Ocean, there have not been yet any irreversible changes in other components of the Arctic climate system," he said.
