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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
1 April 2025/Mindelo/Kiel. Today, the German research vessel POLARSTERN sets sail from the subtropical Mindelo, Cabo Verde, on a special expedition. On board are 13 Master’s students from West Africa, who will experience marine research at first hand during the two-week voyage to Bremerhaven, Germany. The “Floating University” is taking place for the third time under the leadership of the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and contributes to the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) under the WASCAL programme.
How do scientists collect water samples from hundreds or thousands of metres below the surface? How to study the tiny organisms that form the basis of the ocean’s food webs? And how do ocean currents affect these ecosystems? These are the kinds of questions that 13 WASCAL Master's students will soon be answering in practice. They will embark on a two-week expedition aboard the German research vessel POLARSTERN, operated by the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research.
“Floating University” is the name of the project, which forms the shipboard component of the Master's programme “Climate Change and Marine Sciences” at the Universidade Técnica do Atlântico (UTA) in Cabo Verde. The educational voyage PS147/2 will use the ship's transit from Mindelo, Cape Verde, to Bremerhaven, Germany.
“The Floating University is much more than just a training cruise. It’s an intensive learning experience for everyone involved, as the previous two expeditions have shown,” says Dr Björn Fiedler, marine chemist at GEOMAR and chief scientist of the expedition. “The students will work with state-of-the-art marine instrumentation, collect and analyse data, and experience first-hand how an international research team works together. This experience is invaluable for a scientific career in ocean and climate research”.
Research and Education at Sea
During the voyage, the students will collect valuable data for international marine research as well as for their own master's theses. They will be supported by an international team of experienced scientists from various fields, including Dr Corrine Almeida, Professor of Biological Oceanography at UTA, who directs the WASCAL master's programme. “After many lectures in the classroom and laboratory work on land, our students will finally get the chance to work practically at sea. They will learn how to handle technical equipment, samples and the resulting ocean data. These experiences are essential for future roles in research, industry, or policy in their home countries”.
For example, the students will use hydroacoustic systems to get a detailed picture of the distribution of fish in the ocean using sound. They will capture and analyse small organisms using nets. Meanwhile, sensors on board the ship will continuously measure the carbon dioxide and oxygen levels in the water. These data are crucial for understanding how the ocean acts as a climate buffer and the impact of climate change on marine ecosystems.
The PAMOS device will analyse the composition of the air and the students will be able to track how aerosols and trace gases change along the route — a visible sign of the influence of industry, shipping, and natural sources such as Saharan dust.
A highlight of the journey will be a stop at two important long-term ocean observatories: the Cape Verde Ocean Observatory (CVOO) and the European Time Series Oceanographic Station of the Canary Islands (ESTOC). Here, students will help collect physical, biogeochemical, and biological data to document long-term changes in the ocean. They will also deploy an Argo deep-sea drifter — an autonomous measuring device that will collect temperature, salinity, and current data from great depths for years to come. Long after the expedition, they will be able to track the data sent by “their” drifter online.
Explaining the own Research
The students will also learn to present their findings in a way that is understandable not only to experts but also to a wider audience. As they will be doing this on board, interested parties will be able to follow the expedition remotely.
In addition to the theoretical and practical work, there will be time for exchange, discussions about career paths, the master's theses, and the students' home countries.
“For many, the Floating University is one of the most memorable and impressive experiences of their studies,” says Fiedler. “At sea, the human-induced problems in the ocean become visible and tangible.” It is an experience that will stay with the future West African marine and climate scientists as they tackle the pressing issues of climate change and marine conservation.
Expedition at a glance:
Name: PS147/2 (WASCAL III) "Floating University"
Duration: 01 April – 14 April 2025
Chief Scientist: Dr Björn Fiedler
Departure: Mindelo (Cabo Verde)
Destination: Bremerhaven (Germany)
Background:
Participating Institutions
In addition to participants from GEOMAR and UTA, scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW), the Kiel University, the Thünen Institute of Sea Fisheries, the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in Bremerhaven, the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) in Odense, and the Centre de Recherche Océanographique de Dakar Thiaroye (CRODT-ISRA) in Senegal will participate. In addition to the WASCAL students, a Master’s student in International Maritime Law from the Utrecht University and a pupil from the Johannes-Althusius-Gymnasium in Emden are taking part. In total, there are participants from 15 nations with five mother tongues on board.
Seminars in Mindelo and Kiel
Before embarking on POLARSTERN, all participants meet for a pre-cruise seminar at the Ocean Science Centre Mindelo (OSCM).
After the expedition, the students will travel to Kiel for a two-day follow-up seminar at GEOMAR from 14 to 16 April. They will meet other young researchers involved in the “Foster Young Ocean Researcher Development” (FYORD) programme, a joint programme of the priority research area Kiel Marine Science at Kiel University and the GEOMAR to promote and train early career researchers and to strengthen the collaboration with international marine science students.
About WASCAL
The WASCAL programme (“West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use”), funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), strengthens research infrastructure and academic training on climate change and its impacts in West Africa. The two-year Master's programme “Climate Change and Marine Sciences”, coordinated by the Universidade Técnica do Atlântico (UTA) in Mindelo and closely supported by GEOMAR, provides students with scientific expertise for research, environmental management, and industry. Since 2021, the programme is part of the international “UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development”.
The WASCAL alumni network and the “Floating University” also contribute to the international FUTURO project, currently being prepared by GEOMAR. FUTURO aims to develop sustainable management strategies for the West African marine ecosystem.
Research in Cabo Verde
The Cape Verde Islands, located some 6,000 kilometres off the coast of Senegal, have been an independent state since 1981: the Republic of Cabo Verde. The region offers a unique range of scientifically current and highly relevant research topics, many of which relate to the ocean. For more than 20 years, GEOMAR has been conducting research in Cape Verde in collaboration with national and international partners, and aims to further strengthen its cooperation in the region. In 2017, the Ocean Science Centre Mindelo (OSCM) was opened as a regional science and education hub for the international scientific community. The OSCM is jointly operated by GEOMAR and the Cape Verde Institute of the Sea (IMar).
https://www.geomar.de/en/centre/research-in-cape-verde Research in Cabo Verde
https://wascal.org/master-programme-climate-change-and-marine-sciences/ WASCAL Master Research Programme “Climate Change and Marine Sciences”
https://follow-polarstern.awi.de/#main-menu POLARSTERN Online Logbook
https://www.oceanblogs.org/capeverde/ Oceanblogs Cabo Verde
http://www.geomar.de/n9803 Images available for download
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