2001
Participating in sailing the yacht Audacious from New Foundland via Greenland to Norway. We climbed some new alpine routes (and possibly first accents) east of Greenland’s most southerly village, Aappilattoq.
2003
Part of the project "In the footsteps of Roald Amundsen".
We
proceeded to the flow edge, situated at the mouth of Barrow Strait,
just west of Resolute, in Arctic Canada. 2003 was a year with severe ice
conditions compared with the recent years, closing the North West
Passage and thus making safe navigation impossible. We then returned to
Qeqertarsuaq, Northern Greenland and let the boat freeze into the ice
outside the small settlement. During the expedition we gathered
meteorological data on behalf of the Norwegian Meterological Institute.
2004
Part of the project "In the footsteps of Roald Amundsen".
The
vessel Jotun Arctic left Qeqertarsuaq in July, bound for the Canadian
Arctic. Due to extensive ice cover in Baffin Bay during July and the
first half of August we had to proceed north to the Northern Polynia and
Qaanaq (the most Northern settlement in Greenland) before we could turn
west into the Canadian Arctic. We spent one month at Fort Ross, waiting
for the ice to break up in Peel and Larsen Sound. Due to severe ice
conditions we were requested by the Canadian Coast Guard to leave the
area in mid September. The ice almost forced us to spend the winter at
Fort Ross, and we just made it into the Northern most settlement on
Baffin Island, Arctic Bay. One week after we arrived the ice
consolidated and the vessel was ice locked for the winter. During the
expedition we collected samples on behalf of the Norwegian Institute of
Nature Research in addition to gathering meteorological data on behalf
of the Norwegian Meterological Institute.
2005
Part of the project "In the footsteps of Roald Amundsen".
The
sea ice cleared the area around Arctic Bay in July and we left the
settlement almost one year after we arrived, in August. We proceeded
West, back into Fort Ross. As the ice cleared Larsen Sound we proceeded
through Bellot Strait, down into Franklin Strait and Larsen Sound. As we
were proceeding down these treacherous waters the ice closed in and we
hid away in a small cove to get out of the pressured ice. As the ice
closed in we ended up being locked in the cove for 2 weeks. At mid
September the ice cleared for a short period of time, giving us the
possibility to sneak back to Bellot Strait through a narrow shore lead.
We proceeded across the Baffin Bay, South along the West coast of
Greenland and reached Norway on the 22. December. During the expedition
we were gathering meteorological data on behalf of the Norwegian
Meterological Institute.
2007
Part of the project "The Melting Arctic".
We
left Norway in June and proceeded South of Greenland, up along the West
Coast all the way to the Northernmost settlement on Greenland, Qaanaaq.
From the Disko Area and further north we collected oceanographic data
on behalf of Nansen Environmental Remote Sensing Center (affiliated to
University of Bergen) to monitor inflow of warm sea water and the
discharge of freshwater from the Greenland ice sheet. We were also
collecting anthropological data on behalf of Center for International
Environmental and Climate Research (affiliated to University of Oslo) to
assess the vulnerability and adaption of the indigenous population,
stopping at a large number of small settlements in addition to hunting
and fishing camps. To be able to conduct as much work as possible within
the short summer season we used two boats, Jotun Arctic and Skippi. Due
to extremely favorable ice conditions we continued into the Canadian
Arctic, through Peel and Larsen Sound to the small settlement of
Gjoahaven, continuing our anthropological work. We returned back to
Disko Bay and lifted the boats ashore.
2008
Part of the project "The Melting Arctic".
We
departed Qeqertarsuaq and proceeded North, along the Western coast of
Disko Island to the Nugssuaq peninsula on an archaeological expedition
to investigate for ruins of the Norse (Viking) settlements and hunting
camps. After the completion of this task we proceeded South along the
coast and up the East Coast to the settlement of Tasilaq in the
Angmassalik district. On the way we visited different communities to
continue our anthropological work on behalf of Center for International
Environmental and Climate Research (affiliated to University of Oslo).In
the Sermilik fjord close to Tasilaq and in the adjacent offshore area
we conducted oceanographic research on behalf of Nansen Environmental
Remote Sensing Center (affiliated to University of Bergen) for
assessment of the inflow of warm sea water and the discharge of
freshwater from the Greenland ice sheet. At the completion of the work
we proceeded to Iceland and lifted the boat ashore.
2009
Part of the project "The Melting Arctic".
We
returned to the Tasilaq area to continue the oceanographic work. It is
of great importance to have several seasons of data to be able to
analyze the trends and assess the changes in the movement of the water
masses. At the completion of the work we proceeded back to Iceland and
lifted the boat ashore.
2010
Part of the project "The Melting Arctic".
We
returned not only to Tasilaq but to the exact same stations where we
previously had collected oceanographic data. We also collected data from
Johan Pettersens Fjord, a blank spot on the oceanographic map. Since
these areas never before have been visited by scientific vessels, we
recorded navigational data to later be used for generation of
bathymetric maps.
Due to high iceberg production from the
Hellheim Glacier at the head of the Sermilik Fjord severe ice conditions
made progress hard. During the expedition we also satellite tagged
several icebergs and conducted current measurements.
All the
oceanographic work was done on behalf of Nansen Environmental Remote
Sensing Center (affiliated to University of Bergen) for assessment of
the inflow of warm sea water and the discharge of freshwater from the
Greenland ice sheet
During our visit to communities we conducted
anthropological work on behalf of Climate Frontlines, UNESCO.At the
completion of the work we proceeded to across the North Atlantic, back
to Norway.