RUSSIAN HARBOR BAY, July 9. /TASS/. The Arctic Floating University expedition began to research specific features of soils' formation and functioning on islands of the Russian Arctic's Western sector, a TASS correspondent reported from aboard the Professor Molchanov research vessel. Experts took samples on the Mabel Island, Franz Josef Land, and on the Severny Island's coast in the Russian Harbor Bay, Novaya Zemlya. Right now, the expedition is working in the Russian Harbor.

"During this voyage, we will study the soil's morphology, while physical-chemical studies will be carried out in laboratory conditions. We measure the permafrost depth, and see how they form in a certain landscape gradient," Dmitry Kaverin of the Komi Scientific Center's Institute of Biology (the Russian Academy of Science's Urals Branch) told TASS. "Since these are islands, accordingly, the landscape gradient is associated with height, that is, the distance from the sea: low and higher sea terraces."

The coastal geosystems' soil cover on islands in the Russian Arctic's Western sector remains the least studied. Unlike the tundra zone's subarctic landscapes, located mainly on the mainland, the Arctic wastelands soils have formed and function in a much more severe climate and are influenced by mountain landscapes.

The soil formation there is determined by a very short vegetation season, and permafrost rocks are close to the surface, while the aboveground biomass is very little. Unlike the mainland subarctic, the Arctic island soils are formed on shallow low-power loose sediments or on predominantly bedrock. The geographical soil studies in the Western Arctic's island sector are specifically valuable due to the ongoing development and refinement of the Russian soil classification.

"We also analyze here the connection with landscape elements. Like it is in the tundra, we look at the projective cover, that is, the height of vegetation in the tundra, we look at the projective cover of shrubs, how much they occupy, the density of bushes. Here we generally look at the projective cover as such, because the vegetation is very low. We are also looking at the projective covering with rocky placers, because not all the entire surface is covered with plants or at least fine-grained soil," the scientist said.

Soil cover studies are also important in terms of assessing the impact of climate change on Arctic landscapes.

Tests for heavy metals

Daria Khloptsova, a graduate student at the St. Petersburg State University, is engaged in soils of permafrost territories. Her research focuses on soil pollution, in particular, with heavy metals. She pointed to an insufficient attention to monitoring soil pollution, although this is no less important than monitoring water or air pollution.

"I want to see mobile forms of heavy metals, I will be able to look at them accurately in the laboratory, I have done this with Yamal soils," she said. "I wish there were no heavy metals in large quantities there… In fact, the soil contains all the Mendeleev table elements, and as for heavy metals, we believe this is a group that in case those elements in the soil are numerous, then they somehow negatively affect it. If their concentration is not higher than the maximum permissible concentration, then this is absolutely normal, and this is how it should be. But in case of excesses concentrations, we need to see and analyze thoroughly. I hope that everything is fine there, and there's been no impact, at least on Franz Josef Land. As for Novaya Zemlya and the Kolguev, there, of course, has been a bigger human impact."

Arctic Floating University - 2024

On June 25, the Arctic Floating University departed from Arkhangelsk to conduct research in the White and Barents Seas, on the Kolguev Island, on islands of Novaya Zemlya and Franz Josef Land.

The project's partners and sponsors are the Arkhangelsk Region's government, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, the Russian Geographical Society, VTB Bank, Norilsk Nickel, Roshydromet (the hydrometeorology service), the Russian Arctic National Park, the Floating University Coordination Center at MIPT (Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology; also known as PhysTech), the Nauka (Science) year-round youth educational center.

The Arctic Floating University's expeditions continue under the Science and Universities national project, implemented by Russia's Ministry of Science and Higher Education.