Funding secured for SIOS infrastructure development
Atmospheric research installations on the mountain Breinosa outside Longyearbyen. Photo: Anja Strømme/UNIS.
Top image: Atmospheric research installations on the mountain Breinosa outside Longyearbyen. Photo: Anja Strømme/UNIS.
The Research Council of Norway has singled out the Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System – Infrastructure development of the Norwegian node (SIOS-InfraNor) project for funding.
29 June 2017
Text: Eva Therese Jenssen
The Research Council of Norway has allocated NOK 1 billion in funding to research facilities, laboratories, equipment and databases. The Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS) is one of 19 projects that have been singled out for funding.
The Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System – Infrastructure development of the Norwegian node (SIOS-InfraNor) project will be invited to enter into contract negotiations with the Research Council in the autumn. SIOS-InfraNor is an ESFRI project where Norway has a binding agreement in place.
Climate surveillance
Environmental change is one of the most important challenges facing humankind and nature today. Global climate models demonstrate that the Polar regions play a crucial role in the Earth’s climate system.
The Arctic region will probably experience the most severe climate change worldwide with an anticipated warming of four to eight degrees (annual average) and a significant increase in precipitation until the end of the 21st century. Svalbard is consequently an important arena for investigations of environmental and climate change.
The Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS) is a distributed world-class research infrastructure, included on the ESFRI roadmap that will develop a regional observational system in and around Svalbard.
Infrastructure node
The SIOS-InfraNor proposal will enable a coordinated and state-of-the-art observation network for marine, terrestrial and atmospheric research to be implemented and operated around Svalbard. Based on new and existing research infrastructure, owned by its member institutions, SIOS-InfraNor will aid to address Earth System Science questions related to global change.
SIOS is offering a single-point access to infrastructure, tools and services as well as providing a continuous development of methods, ground-based observations and a substantial capability for utilising remote sensing resources.
SIOS will link with other observational infrastructures across the Arctic to share data and best practice, contributing to a pan-Arctic observational structure that facilitates better regional modelling and understanding of the role of the Arctic in the Earth System.
More about SIOS: https://www.sios-svalbard.org/
