First Indian Arctic Expedition

Union Minister for Science and Technology and earth Sciences Shri Kapil Sibal today launched the first Indian Arctic Expedition as he handed over the National Flag to Shri Rasik Ravindra, Director of the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR), Goa who will lead a team consisting of Dr. S. M. Singh, Scientist from NCAOR, Dr. S. Shivaji, Dy. Director from CCMB, Hyderabad, Dr. C. G. Deshpande, Scientist from IITM, Pune and Dr. Dhruv Sen Singh, Lecturer, from University of Lucknow. At a formal sending off ceremony in New Delhi the Minister wished the team success in their planned scientific endeavours.

To begin with the team will initiate the following three projects in collaboration with the Norwegian Polar Research Institute.

i. Arctic microbes as work horses of biotechnology;

ii. Measurement of atmospheric aerosols and ions in the Arctic region and

iii. Earth Science studies at Svalbard

During the first phase Indian scientists will initiate work on the above three projects at Ny-Alesund and work for a period ranging from two weeks to four weeks during August and September 2007. In the second phase the following four projects will be initiated in the early spring next year, commencing in February 2008.

i. Snowpack production of carbon monoxide and its diurnal variability

ii. Sea ice microbial communities project

iii. Carbon-cycling in the near-shore environments of Kongsfjorden

iv. Understanding the link between the Arctic and tropical Indian Ocean climatic variations

The first Indian Arctic expedition marks a beginning of long term scientific research by Indian scientists in yet another arena of global scientific collaborative research in the difficult polar regions, since the first Indian scientific expedition landed in Antarctica in 1981.

Currently, Norway, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea and China, have their research stations in Ny-Alesund for Arctic research.

Source : Press Information Bureau
Date : August 03, 2007