The Arctic Ocean comprises two deep basins: the Amerasian Basin and the Eurasian Basin. The Amerasian Basin is the older of the two at roughly 135 million years old, and lies at a depth of over 3,000 meters. Understanding how the Amerasian Basin was formed is important because it has influenced the tectonic evolution of the surrounding continental shelves and global ocean circulation, which have a major effect on the global climate.
The De Long Islands lie off the northeast coast of Siberia in a remote part of the Arctic Ocean that is seldom visited. To enable it to reach the islands, the research expedition was conducted in cooperation with the A. P. Karpinsky Russian Geological Research Institute (VSEGEI). The researchers traveled between Bennett Island, Henrietta Island and Zhokhov Island for two weeks on the Russian ship Mikhail Somov. In their fieldwork on the islands, the researchers collected geological samples for analysis.
Principal investigator
Victoria Pease
Department of Geological Sciences, Stockholm University