Fram Centre

Seabirds ring the alarm

Changes in seabird breeding productivity reflect hemispheric differences in ocean warming and human use, and call out the need for policies that reduce the impacts of climate change on the world’s marine ecosystems.
June 07, 2021

Norwegian Environmental Specimen Bank helps us understand chemicals’ history

The Norwegian Environmental Specimen Bank, established in 2012, contains frozen samples of animals, plants, air, and mud from mainland Norway and Svalbard. These samples are time capsules, preserving the present environmental state for future analysis, and providing regulators with an important tool.
May 19, 2021

Salmon farming in the North: How do we regulate growth?

Aquaculture has become a major part of global food production, and according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, it is now the fastest-growing animal food-producing industry. In the North, further growth in salmon farming is expected. What mechanisms are in place to regulate this growth?
May 06, 2021

Hunting for plastic: new digital technology to find and map marine litter

When plastic first arrived on the scene, it was welcomed as a benefit for humanity. Fascinated, the French philosopher Roland Barthes envisioned “a plasticised world” in his book Mythologies (1957). Now Barthes’ vision has become reality, for better and worse, and enthusiasm for plastic has dwindled.
April 26, 2021

When COVID-19 came to the Arctic

2020 should have been an excellent year. But just three months into it, everything came to a standstill. Covid-19 has impacted many, including scientists working in the Arctic.
April 20, 2021

“Skottelus” – the smaller relative of the salmon sea louse

In Norway, salmon farming is considered to threaten wild salmonids mainly in two ways. First, fish that escape from captivity might crossbreed with wild salmon. Second, farmed fish often carry a parasite – the salmon sea louse. But salmon farms are also plagued by another sea louse…
April 13, 2021

Polar bears: delight and nuisance

A polar bear in the wild is a delight to behold. A polar bear gnawing on the seat of a snowmobile, or demolishing costly equipment, or breaking into a cabin is more nuisance than delight. Norway’s policies in Svalbard aim to minimise the risk of undesirable encounters between humans and polar bears.
April 06, 2021

Addressing multiple stressors: Arctic science and the Stockholm Convention

The process of translating scientific knowledge into policy is not straightforward. In the Arctic, the speed of change and the complexity of multiple environmental stressors makes this process particularly challenging. The science on multiple stress is growing, but has it been translated into policy?
March 29, 2021

Birds of a feather flock together

It’s never good to talk about someone behind their back, but it can be especially perilous where researchers in Tromsø are concerned. There’s a substantial risk that the person you’re gossiping about is the significant other of one of your listeners.
March 22, 2021

Profile: The team player

For 25 years, Eldbjørg Sofie Heimstad has been the foremost champion of cooperation at the Fram Centre. And if the occasion demands, she will go to great lengths for her team.
March 15, 2021

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