Collaborate with us: 20 polar research projects focusing on ice sheets, oceans, carbon and the climate
September 28th, 2026
Are you doing research on the links between ice sheets, carbon cycles, ocean ecosystems and the climate in the Arctic or Antarctica?
We believe that polar research benefits from collaboration – across institutions, across borders, and especially across scientific disciplines.
We have therefore compiled a list of all 20 research projects affiliated to the iC3 Polar Research Hub. We do not manage all of these projects, but in each case, one or several of our team members are part of the core project group. Taken together, and in combination with our partnership with Tromsø university, the Norwegian Polar Institute and NORCE, this broad engagement makes iC3 a vibrant hive of ground-breaking interdisciplinary research.
If you want to strike up new collaborations, please browse the project list below and get in touch with one of our researchers or with our iC3 manager Terri Souster.
CURRENT AND UPCOMING PROJECTS AFFILIATED WITH iC3
CLIM2Ant: From climatic drivers to Antarctic ice sheet response: improving accuracy in sea level projections
CLIM2Ant is improving projections of the Antarctic Ice Sheet’s contribution to future sea-level rise. The project combines glaciology and oceanography with numerical modelling and statistical analysis to better represent ice-sheet and climate interactions at regional and circumpolar scales. Its results are intended to improve future assessments of Antarctic contributions to sea-level rise.
Duration: 2024–2027
iC3 contact: Tore Hattermann
GlaciGas
GlaciGas investigates climate-driven methane outgassing at the margins of retreating Svalbard glaciers. It studies both land-terminating and marine-terminating glaciers to identify methane sources, quantify fluxes and assess how emissions may change as glaciers retreat. Related iC3 fieldwork has mapped methane in glacier-fed rivers and fjords, highlighting glacier forefields and subglacial drainage as previously under-recognised pathways for Arctic methane release.
Duration: 2024–2026
No webpage available yet.
iC3 contact: Gabrielle Kleber
I-CRYME: Impact of cryosphere melting on Southern Ocean ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles
I-CRYME aims to understand and quantify how melting Antarctic ice caps, glaciers and sea ice affect physical ocean dynamics, biogeochemical cycles and marine ecosystems in the Kong Håkon VII Sea. It combines field observations, laboratory work and modelling, using research vessels, the TRIAXUS towed platform and long-term deep-sea moorings to study nutrient release, microbial responses and changes in the Southern Ocean carbon sink.
Duration: 2023–2028
iC3 contact: Sebastien Moreau
ICEBIO Doctoral Network
ICEBIO is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network focused on microbial and biogeochemical processes across the glacier biome. Twelve doctoral candidates investigate how microorganisms function and adapt in snow, ice, cryoconite, subglacial and glacier-fed environments, and how carbon, nutrients, biomass and contaminants move through these systems. The network combines research and training to build a framework and database of functional diversity in glacier ecosystems and to train a new generation of specialists in glacier microbiology and biogeochemistry.
Duration: 2022–2027
iC3 contact: Jemma Wadham
Into the Blue (i2B)
Into the Blue investigates how the Arctic cryosphere and wider Earth system behaved during past climates warmer than today, when the Arctic may have been seasonally ice-free. The ERC Synergy project combines new geological records with Earth System and Ice Sheet models to reconstruct sea ice, temperature, oceanography and ecosystem change, and to improve understanding of the risks and global consequences of a future “blue” Arctic.
Duration: 2024–2030
iC3 contact: Jochen Knies
MERRACC: Marine ecosystem response to rapid Arctic climate change
MERRACC investigates how Arctic marine ecosystems respond to the growing influence of Atlantic waters as the climate warms. The project combines fossil records with advanced micro-CT scanning to examine how tiny marine organisms called foraminifera reproduce and adapt to environmental change. By comparing past and present responses, it aims to understand the consequences of rapid warming for Arctic species and improve the foundations for modelling future ecosystem change.
Duration: 2023–2027
iC3 contact: Mohamed Ezat
METALLICA: Meltwater release of heavy metals from glacier to ocean in a changing Arctic
METALLICA investigates how toxic heavy metals released from Arctic glaciers are mobilised, transported through meltwater into fjords, and transferred through marine ecosystems. The interdisciplinary project combines glaciology, geochemistry and marine ecology, and aims to turn its findings into knowledge and tools that can support environmental policy and management.
Duration: 2023–2026
iC3 contact: Jemma Wadham
METHANICE: Methanotrophic communities in ice
The project aims to identify the role of methane-consuming bacteria (methanotrophs) in terrestrial seasonal icings that cover sub-permafrost methane-rich groundwater springs around Svalbard. These findings will not only further our understanding of Arctic methane dynamics, but will also grant insight into the evolution of life in extreme cold environments and help prepare astrobiologists for upcoming missions investigating our solar system’s icy moons.
Duration: 2022–2026
iC3 contact: Dimitri Kalenitchenko
METRIS: Methane emissions and tidewater glacier retreat in Svalbard
METRIS investigates how retreating and surging glaciers influence subsea methane seepage in Svalbard fjords. Using geophysical surveys, sediment cores, water and atmospheric measurements, and modelling, the project will quantify present-day emissions, reconstruct past changes in seepage, and identify the main glaciological and geological controls. The results will help develop a broader framework for glacier-driven methane seepage across the Arctic and Antarctic.
Duration: 2027-3032
No project website available yet.
iC3 contact: Gabrielle Kleber
POLARCARB: Polar ice sheet impacts on the carbon cycle revealed by enhanced biogeochemistry capacity
POLARCARB investigates methane emissions from polar ice sheets and their impacts on the carbon cycle. Combining field studies in Antarctica, Svalbard and Greenland with laboratory analyses and modelling, the project will assess methane release across contrasting ice-to-ocean environments and develop the first global evaluation of glacier- and ice sheet-driven methane emissions. It will also strengthen marine biogeochemistry research, international collaboration and early-career training at iC3.
Duration: 2027-2032
No project website available yet.
iC3 contact: Sarah Seabrook
RETRO-SEEP: Investigating glacier retreat and methane seepage in Arctic Canada
RETRO-SEEP investigates how glacier retreat drives the formation of subsea methane seeps, a potentially widespread but poorly understood process. The project combines acoustic mapping, marine and lake sediment cores, and terrestrial observations around Axel Heiberg Island in Arctic Canada. Its results will connect methane release with past and present glacier retreat, improving understanding of methane sources in changing polar environments.
Duration: 2027-2027
iC3 contact: Gabrielle Kleber
SYNCHRONY: Synchronous Southern Ocean Observatory
SYNCHRONY is building an internationally coordinated Southern Ocean observing system for long-term climate and ecosystem monitoring, combining observations with modelling, artificial intelligence and interoperable data infrastructure to improve detection and prediction of ocean–ice–atmosphere change and to support open polar data.
Duration: 2026-2030
iC3 contact: Tore Hattermann
TONe: Troll Observing Network
TONe is a multidisciplinary, distributed observing network centred on Norway’s Troll Research Station in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. It provides long-term observations of the atmosphere, ocean, ice, solid Earth and ecosystems, together with drone-based measurement services and modern data systems, giving Norwegian and international researchers access to coordinated climate and environmental observations from a region where sustained measurements are scarce.
Duration: 2022–2032
iC3 contact: Tore Hattermann
WOBEC: Weddell sea observatory of biodiversity and ecosystem change
WOBEC is designing and applying a long-term biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring framework for the Eastern Weddell Sea / King Haakon VII Sea. An international consortium of 11 institutes in eight countries is working with stakeholders to make biodiversity and ecosystem data accessible, establish a baseline for detecting change, and develop monitoring strategies that support global biodiversity goals and the proposed Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area.
Duration: 2024–2027
iC3 contact: Sebastien Moreau
CURRENT MSCA POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP PROJECTS
If you want to design and run your own research project at iC3 as a postdoc, please check out our MSCA postdoctoral funding support programme. We will advertise fresh MSCA opportunities in early 2027.
CAPTSA: Advancing projections of Antarctic ice-ocean interactions with physics-informed neural networks
CAPTSA will develop a physics-informed neural network framework to improve understanding and prediction of Antarctic ice-ocean interactions. It will integrate satellite data, limited in-situ observations and physical equations to reconstruct daily full-depth ocean temperature, salinity and circulation around Antarctica. The resulting fields will be used to study Antarctic slope front variability, intrusions of warm circumpolar deep water and their links to ice-shelf basal melting, helping improve projections of the Antarctic Ice Sheet contribution to sea-level rise.
Duration: 2026-2028
iC3 contact: Vijay Kondeti
GMPro: Glacier melt proxy
GMPro is developing a new biogeochemical proxy for reconstructing past Arctic glacier meltwater discharge using barium-to-calcium ratios in benthic foraminifera. Working in Svalbard and Greenland, the project combines modern calibration studies with palaeo-records to trace barium pathways from land and glaciers into fjords, determine how barium is incorporated into foraminiferal shells, validate the proxy against established glaciological indicators, and reconstruct glacier responses during past warm periods. The resulting records are intended to improve understanding of long-term glacier dynamics and support better climate-model validation.
Duration: 2026-2028
iC3 contact: Inda Brinkmann
PULSE: Potential nutrient release from deglaciating land surfaces to downstream ecosystems
PULSE quantifies how Arctic glacier retreat and exposure of new glacier forefields affect soil nitrogen cycling and the export of nitrogen to streams, fjords and coastal marine ecosystems. The project examines how nitrogen release varies with time since deglaciation, local geology and freeze-thaw conditions, combines field measurements in a sub-Arctic glaciated catchment with experiments simulating future High Arctic conditions, and aims to predict how changing proglacial landscapes may alter riverine nutrient supply and downstream ecosystems.
Duration: 2025–2027
iC3 contact: Laura Helene Rasmussen
SeepingArctic: Integrated assessment of geostructural fluid flow and microbial methane oxidation controls on Arctic seafloor carbon emissions from climate-sensitive hydrate reservoirs
SeepingArctic will develop an integrated mathematical framework linking the physical and biogeochemical processes that control hydrate-sourced seafloor carbon emissions at Arctic margins. The framework combines a gas-hydrate system model, including transient hydrate dynamics and geostructural controls on fluid flow through high-permeability pathways, with a biogeochemical module representing carbon-relevant redox reactions, methanotrophic biomass dynamics and mineral equilibria. The project is designed to clarify how climate-sensitive hydrate reservoirs, fluid pathways and microbial methane oxidation interact to control carbon release from the Arctic seafloor.
Duration: 2026-2028
iC3 contact: Maria De La Fuente
SIBERICE: Closing expanding knowledge gaps in Siberian palaeo-glaciology
SIBERICE tests whether a large Siberian ice sheet existed during the last glacial period and whether its disappearance could help explain part of the unresolved global sea-level budget. The project uses high-resolution satellite imagery and existing landform data to systematically map glacial features across Siberia, reconstruct past ice extent and dynamics, estimate ice volumes and sea-level equivalents, and develop a remote method for dating former ice margins from moraine morphology. The work targets one of the largest remaining geographical uncertainties in palaeo-glaciology.
Duration: 2025-2027
iC3 contact: Benjamin Boyes
WRAPS: Waveguide Raman spectroscopy for polar iron sensing
WRAPS is developing a portable optical method for continuous, reagent-free monitoring of dissolved iron in glacial meltwaters. The project combines an on-chip waveguide design for liquid Raman sensing with identification and calibration models that can quantify dissolved iron in glacial waters. Better time- and space-resolved measurements of iron export from glaciers will help researchers understand how changing meltwater fluxes affect nutrient supply, phytoplankton productivity, polar carbon cycling and climate-relevant biogeochemical processes.
Duration: 2024–2026
iC3 contact: Jan Viljanen
COMPLETED PROJECTS THAT ARE NO LONGER ACTIVE
ARCLIM: The Arctic Ocean under warm climates
ARCLIM investigated how the Arctic Ocean, carbon cycle, Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and climate interact under warm conditions. Combining marine ecology, geochemistry and climate modelling, it developed and applied new proxy and modelling techniques to reconstruct ocean temperature, carbonate chemistry and freshwater changes during past warm periods, helping improve understanding of Arctic climate sensitivity and feedbacks.
Duration: 2021–2025
iC3 contact: Mohamed Ezat
BREATHE: Bottom sea ice respiration and nutrient exchanges assessed for the Arctic
BREATHE investigated two major uncertainties in estimates of Arctic sea-ice algal productivity: turbulence-driven nutrient supply and the respiratory costs of algae living in sea ice. Combining in situ observations, experiments and modelling, it aimed to improve understanding of sea-ice habitats and make estimates and projections of ice-algal primary production more accurate.
Duration: 2021–2026
iC3 contact: Philipp Assmy & Pedro Duarte
CRiceS: Climate relevant interactions and feedbacks: the role of sea ice and snow in the polar and global climate system
CRiceS investigated physical, chemical and biogeochemical interactions and feedbacks among ocean, sea ice, snow and atmosphere in the polar regions. Bringing together international climate research teams, it combined observations and modelling to improve understanding of polar processes, strengthen their representation in climate models and improve projections of polar and global climate change.
Duration: 2021–2025
iC3 contact: Pedro Duarte
CRYOMICS: Cryosphere-ocean: effect on the microbial communities in the Southern Ocean
CRYOMICS investigates how nutrients, trace metals and carbon released by the melting cryosphere influence phytoplankton and sea-ice algae communities in the Southern Ocean. Focusing on the King Håkon VII Sea in the Eastern Weddell Gyre, the MSCA project combines intensive sampling, biogeochemical analyses and metagenomics to understand the structure and function of microbial communities along a cryosphere-ocean continuum, and to assess how changing ice conditions may alter primary production, the biological carbon pump and wider ecosystem functioning.
Duration: 2024–2026
iC3 contact: Aurélie Labarre
FACE-IT: Arctic biodiversity and livelihoods
FACE-IT examined how declining glaciers and sea ice are transforming Arctic fjord and coastal ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. The interdisciplinary project compared sites in Greenland, Svalbard and northern Norway, combining natural and social sciences with stakeholder participation to understand ecological transitions, biodiversity change and implications for Arctic livelihoods.
Duration: 2020–2024
iC3 contact: Pedro Duarte
GREASE: Greenland Ice Sheet stability and evolution
GREASE investigated the stability and future evolution of the Greenland Ice Sheet to improve projections of its contribution to sea-level rise. The project used ice-sheet and climate modelling to constrain future ice loss, estimate upper bounds for sea-level contribution and explore climate trajectories that could stabilise the ice sheet over longer timescales.
Duration: 2021–2025
iC3 contact: Petra Langebroek
HAVOC: Safe havens for ice-associated flora and fauna in a seasonally ice-covered Arctic Ocean
HAVOC investigated whether sea-ice ridges can act as refuges for ice-associated flora and fauna as the Arctic ice pack becomes thinner and increasingly seasonal. The project contributed to the MOSAiC expedition and combined observations of ridged and level sea ice to improve understanding of how changing ice structure affects Arctic habitats and ecosystems.
Duration: 2019–2022
iC3 contact: Philipp Assmy
iMELT: Ocean-ice shelf interaction and channelized melting in Dronning Maud Land
iMELT investigated how ocean processes control basal melting of ice shelves in Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica, with a focus on Fimbulisen. Combining under-ice-shelf and open-ocean moorings, autonomous radar, satellite observations and high-resolution modelling, the project examined links between ocean conditions, ice-shelf channels and melt rates relevant to Antarctic ice loss and sea-level rise.
Duration: 2019–2023
iC3 contact: Tore Hattermann
nuArctic: Towards a better understanding of the nutrient cycles in the “new” Arctic Ocean and implications for future primary productivity and carbon export
nuArctic investigated nutrient and carbon cycling in a rapidly changing Arctic Ocean, focusing on poorly constrained organic-matter remineralisation and the role of terrigenous inputs. Using observations and coupled ocean–sea-ice–biogeochemistry modelling, it aimed to explain missing nutrient sources and assess how changing nutrient supply may affect future primary productivity and carbon export.
Duration: 2022–2024
iC3 contact: Philipp Assmy
OCEAN:ICE: Ocean-Cryosphere Exchanges in Antarctica: impacts on Climate and the Earth System
OCEAN:ICE investigated how interactions between the Antarctic Ice Sheet and Southern Ocean affect climate and the Earth system. Combining observations and modelling, the project examined ocean-driven ice loss, freshwater impacts on ocean circulation, feedbacks between ice and ocean, and potential tipping behaviour to reduce uncertainty in projections of Antarctic change and its global consequences.
Duration: 2022–2026
iC3 contact: Tore Hattermann
SEAMSTRESS: Tectonic stress effects on Arctic methane seepage
SEAMSTRESS investigated the mechanisms controlling methane release from Arctic marine sediments, testing how regional tectonic stress and the loading and unloading of ice masses influence seepage. Using marine geophysical, seismological and sediment observations around the western Svalbard margin, the project sought to improve understanding of where and when methane escapes from the seafloor and how seepage varies through time.
Duration: 2019–2024
iC3 contact: Andreia Plaza-Faverola
SUDARCO: Sustainable development of the Arctic Ocean
SUDARCO investigated the rapidly changing and increasingly accessible Arctic Ocean to provide knowledge for sustainable governance. Focusing on the Nansen and Amundsen basins north of Svalbard and Greenland, the programme combined year-round observations, remote sensing, modelling, ecosystem research and social-science analysis to identify vulnerable areas, assess future accessibility and support management of emerging human activities.
Duration: 2022–2026
iC3 contact: Philipp Assmy
The Nansen Legacy
The Nansen Legacy investigated the past, present and future climate and ecosystem of the northern Barents Sea and adjacent Arctic Ocean. The large Norwegian collaboration combined extensive research cruises, autonomous observing platforms, satellites and modelling to study physical and biological processes, ecosystem responses to warming and sea-ice loss, and implications for sustainable management.
Duration: 2018–2024
iC3 contact: Philipp Assmy
TiPACCs: Tipping points in Antarctic climate components
TiPACCs investigated whether abrupt tipping points could occur in Antarctic continental shelf seas and the Antarctic Ice Sheet, and how the two systems interact. Using multiple ocean and ice-flow models together with observations and palaeo-reconstructions, it assessed conditions that could trigger rapid changes, consequences for global sea level and potential early-warning indicators.
Duration: 2019–2024
iC3 contact: Petra Langebroek