Research tasks re the drifting station "North Pole-36"

Arctic region is the part of the global climate system, where climate fluctuations, caused by either natural or anthropogenic factors, show the most. The most important problems, stimulating the interest of Russia and other Arctic Nations for the study of Arctic Ocean are :

" Sensitivity of Arctic to climate variations and the necessity of modeling for the forecast of their changes ;

" Vulnerability of Arctic environment and role of the Arctic Ocean in transport of matter, including the pollutants and radioactive nuclides;

" Growth of economical activity in the high north

Active study and development of Arctic, necessity of monitoring of the ecological situation in the Arctic ocean, especially its coastal zones, make organization and monitoring of the system atmosphere-ice-cover -ocean in the real time scale in the complex of meteorological, ice, hydrophysical , geochemical, geophysical , biological and other parameters the prior task. Results of such monitoring will be the basis for the improvement of monitoring of the Arctic Ocean and weather forecast methods and models of Arctic climate.

The first question, which appears at the proposal of large scale research in the Arctic, is always as: is it worth spending forces and funds to organize the drifting stations and oceanographic surveys of the territories covered by ice? The response can only be positive. Climatic and oceanographic meaning of the Ocean with the unique characteristics stays far beyond its boarders. For example, deep waters, originated in its seas fill the Atlantic Basin and influence much the circulation World Ocean. Ice cover of the Arctic Ocean has thermodynamic stability, remains for millions of years, spreading from time to time to the North Atlantic and influences the global heat balance and the climatic system of the whole Earth. During interaction of water masses of various origins with the ice cover and atmosphere, their transport and transformation, positive and negative thermodynamic connections are forming. They determine the fluctuations of climatic regime in the North Polar region, spreding then southwards.

Today there are reasons to suggest that long period climate changes of the Polar system exist, the origin of which is not clear enough. Influence of water mass with high salinity developing on the shelves of the marginal arctic seas on the regime deep waters of the Arctic Ocean is not deeply studied. It is also not quite obvious at what seasons the reorganization of ice-hydrilogical regime in the Arctic Basin takes place. Lack of such information is explained by scarcity of annual reliable observations with the modern equipment.

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September 9 2008 at 9-00 p.m ceremonial hoisting the flag of Russian Federation took place on the drifting station "North Pole-36" At 6-00 p.m. the first weather report was transmitted into the Global Communication System .

18 persons are involved in the station:

Katraev Yu.I. – head of the station,

Churun V.N. – ass. of the science

Luginin A.V> – senior engineer-meteorologist,

Bobkov I.A.- engineer-meteorologist,

Ovchinnikov S.A. – the head of the aerological team,

Gromov Yu.V. – senior engineer-aerologist,

Ipatov A.Yu. – head of the team,

Kuzmin S.B. – senior engineer-oceanologist,

Petrovskiy T.V. -senior engineer – sea ice researcher,

Panov L.V.- senior engineer – sea ice researcher,

Kuznetsov N.M. – engineer – sea ice researcher,

Kornilov A.A – head of the radio center,

Medvedkin E.V. – senior engineer-hydrographer,

Klimov A.V. – head of the engine electrostation,

Bykov À.À. – engineer-operator

Kumyshev G.M. – engineer-operator of the transport vehicles,

Semenov V.M. – operator-technologist,

Chubakov V.P. – physician