Ny Alesund Svalbard
Arctic Tern, sterna paradisea, hovering near the dog yard Ny Alesund, Svalbard. Arctic terns migrate more than any other species bird – up to 35,000km per year for some birds, as the travel to Antarctica and back, and can enjoy two polar summers. The terns nest in the tundra in the scientific research centre of Ny Alesund, where they lay eggs, and tend to attack passersby in self-defence.
This is one of those gems that turn up more than a year after the images is made, missed during some hurried edit. I was searching in a folder from the 2010 trip to Svalbard when I found this lovely image. View it large »
The observatory, used by international authorities including NASA, measures sea, ice, and land levels, amongst other things.
Keeping the antenna going at what is regarded as one of the most important observatories is vital for GPS-based navigation, as well as Svalbard-based international research.
“It is important that we get a new antenna in place as soon as possible. We risk interruption of the information collected if the existing antenna collapses, which would be a very serious situation”, the Progress Party’s (FrP) Morten Høglund, Chairman of Parliament’s Delegation for Arctic Cooperation, tells NRK.
Last year, US Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Maria Otero visited the island to discuss Arctic and climate change issues. The Norwegian government also announced it was to spend 60 million kroner on upgrading communications between Ny-Ålesund on the west coast of Spitsbergen and Longyearbyen.
NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA) and several other organizations have sent letters to the Norwegian authorities, urging them to allocate money for the new antenna, but this is still uncertain.
“I have noted broad international support from both European and American sources. There is both major scientific and broad environmental interest here, because the observatory is central to make the precise measurements we need to combat climate change in the future,” says Environment Minister Erik Solheim.
The Minister has no exact date for when work will start, but states that, “It is quite clear that this is a project we must find room for in budgets for the coming years.”
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