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Trans-Arctic expedition’s results to be used for Arctic complex development

The expedition's key objectives were to carry on the traditions of marine and air expeditions and of drifting North Pole stations in the high-latitude Arctic

VLADIVOSTOK, October 28. /TASS/. The information, collected during the Trans-Arctic expedition, will be used to study water masses’ formation and will favor complex development of the Arctic region, head of Roshydromet, Russia’s national meteorology service, Igor Shumakov said at a ceremony, marking the end of the expedition.

The Trans-Arctic 2019 expedition is a big project of Roshydromet. Its key objectives were to carry on the traditions of marine and air expeditions and of drifting North Pole stations in the high-latitude Arctic. The expedition, which included four stages, set off from Murmansk on March 20. Roshydromet’s four vessels one after another worked in the Arctic seas for more than five months. The expedition was financed by the federal budget.

"Using the collected data, scientists will see more clearly basic elements of the hydrometeorological regime, which change in space and time, and will study mechanisms of water masses’ formation more thoroughly," he said. "Results of water, air, soil, biota tests serve to evaluate the modern conditions and levels of anthropogenic influence on the Arctic ecosystems, thus enabling experts to develop recommendations on how to improve the monitoring systems and to assess the pollution levels.

"Director of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute of the Russian Meteorological Service Alexander Makarov said the expedition obtained fundamentally new data on ice degradation and formation. This information is specifically important due to the growth of navigation along the Northern Sea Route, he added.

The world ocean exploration program and the increase in the number of marine expeditions are part of the Science national project. The official presumes that by 2024 Russia will be among the five world leaders for scientific research and development. A total of 636 billion rubles ($10 billion) were included in the national project’s budget. By 2024, 50% of the entire equipment base will have been upgraded, and more than half of the scientific staff will be young experts aged under 39.

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