Research, Innovation, Technology

Climate research and Arctic research

The Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research in Bergen is a leading European centre for climate research. The centre was established in 2000, and boasts Northern Europe's largest academic community for research on the greenhouse effect and anthropogenic climate change. It is a collaboration between several institutions, including the University of Bergen and the Institute of Marine Research. The Bjerknes Centre is named after the founder of modern meteorology, Vilhelm Bjerknes. It has has an internationally renowned academic community and has attracted top researchers from multiple countries. They conduct research on everything from extreme weather and glaciers to the Gulf Stream and CO2 uptake in the ocean. In 2007, in collaboration with the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and researchers at the University of Oslo, they developed the important climate model NorESM.

"The Nansen Legacy" is a major research project that continues Norway's tradition of Arctic exploration. With 230 researchers and the research vessel FF “Kronprins Haakon”, the project is studying the effects of climate change on the Arctic. The aim is to understand the effects of the ice retreating in the northern Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean. The researchers use a holistic approach to understand the connections between the atmosphere, sea ice, ocean currents, and marine flora and fauna. The project has been essential in securing scientific knowledge for the sustainable management of Arctic waters. FF “Kronprins Haakon” is one of the world's most advanced research vessels. It is specially equipped to cope with the harsh conditions in the Arctic and allows researchers to carry out complex analyses and experiments on board.