Svalbard Seminar Series

Ringhorndalen – the biodiversity hotspot in Svalbard

Pernille Bronken Eidesen, Associate Professor in terrestrial Arctic biology, UNIS

The Ringhorndalen area contains more plant species and plant-eating insects than any other location in Svalbard. Have these species established recently as a consequence of climate change, or are they survivors from a warmer period in the past?

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Permafrost in Svalbard: How cold is it, what does it consist of, and how does it influence the ecosystems and the landscape activity?

Hanne H. Christiansen, Professor in physical geography, UNIS and Aga Nowak, Associate Professor in hydrology and biogeochemistry

Svalbard has some of the warmest permafrost this far north in the Arctic. We study how climate influences the permafrost and how this can affect the landscape enabling landsliding.