In Norway's Arctic, meteorologists have a first-row seat to climate change
In the cold of the Norwegian Arctic, meteorologist Trond Robertsen manually recorded precipitation levels for over two decades, witnessing firsthand the effects of climate change.
At 66, Robertsen retired after enduring spartan conditions during missions that totalled eight years on two islands of the Svalbard archipelago: Bjornoya (Bear Island) and Hogen.
To reach the remote Bjornoya, where the only humans are the nine employees of the small weather station, the meteorologists have to fly in by helicopter as they are rotated on a six-month basis.
"The idea is to not stay too long, because it's a different rhythm, and you are isolated," Robertsen told AFP.
It is demanding work.
"It's a 24/7 occupation," he said. "We are doing it all day, all night." The team worked shifts to cover all hours of the day, he explained.
AFP | Olivier MORIN
Weather observation starts in the early morning at 6:00 am.
"It's manually done, then you have to go outside and check the bucket that is collecting precipitation," said Robertsen.
"During wintertime you have to melt the snow and ice into water" to determine how much has fallen.
The data is then transmitted the Norwegian Meteorological Institute in Tromso and Oslo.
"This tiny little observation is actually quite crucial for the weather forecasting systems up north, because observations are so sparse from that area."
Bjornoya sits in the middle of fishing grounds, and the weather reports published twice a day are closely followed by the fishing boats in the area.
- Less ice, fewer bears -
Since his first missions to the Arctic in the 1990s, Robertsen has witnessed the changing climate.
"When I started going up north, there was a lot of ice. In the later years, it's less ice and fewer polar bears. You can see the climate change," he said.
Polar bears have been classified as a vulnerable population since 1982 on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species, with the loss of Arctic sea ice the most pressing threat against the species.
However, their precise numbers, are almost impossible to assess.
AFP | Olivier MORIN
In winter, employees of station always venture out in pairs and have to be armed due to the presence of polar bears, but according to Robertsen it's rarer to encounter them today.
In April, during his last mission to the island, Robertsen had an accident while doing carpentry: he slipped and ended up cutting one finger clean off and half of another.
Due to tough weather conditions, he had to wait some 26 hours before being evacuated by helicopter and transported to a hospital.
"It was a heavy snowstorm coming in, only the day after the helicopter came," he recounted.
Looking back, Robertsen does not regret the years spent under the austere living conditions.
"The Arctic has given me so many experiences and memories so it is a small fee to pay back with my left little finger and part of my ring finger," he said.
By Olivier Morin With Johanna Wastfelt In Stockholm
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
15 hours ago
- IOL News
Young Mozambican inventor bringing the blind smart 'vision'
Robotics student and inventor Joao Antonio Rego (24) poses for a portrait wearing a smart glass prototype while at his house in Matola. Image: Amilton Neves / AFP When Armando Ernesto Chau straps on the futuristic smart glasses that a young Mozambican robotics student is developing in the family dining room, he has a vision of a life less confined to his modest home. Chau is the prototype tester for Joao Antonio Rego, a 24-year-old robotics and electronic engineering student driven to provide visually impaired Mozambicans with assistance that goes beyond a simple cane. Since he lost his sight 20 years ago, the 45-year-old father has not worked and rarely leaves his home in Matola, outside the capital Maputo. Smart glasses prototypes invented by 24 years old robotics student Joao Antonio Rego are displayed at his house in Matola on June 14, 2025. This prototype is the latest in a series since Rego launched his Vision Hope project in 2021, earning Mozambique's Young Creative Award for technological innovation the following year. Image: Amilton Neves / AFP Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Rego's electronic glasses -- battery-powered devices embedded with sensors that scan for obstacles ahead and emit warning vibrations -- offer the promise of new possibilities. "It is vibrating ... it is those bushes," Chau said, demonstrating for AFP Rego's Vision Hope 0.2. "Maybe, there is a window here... yes." "Because of these obstacles, it vibrates. So I go back," he said. "It stopped. See? Then it says there is something on this side... When I turn, it is quiet." Resembling a virtual reality eye mask, this is Rego's latest prototype since he launched his Vision Hope project in 2021, winning Mozambique's Young Creative Award for technological innovation the following year. New features include a larger 120-degree range and more accurate sensors, explained Rego, a student at Eduardo Mondlane University. The battery, attached to a strap that is worn over a shoulder, is on a smart system that saves power and warns when it is running low. A GPS allows others to know the whereabouts of the user. Inspiration Rego is already working on improvements in his dining room workshop. "I want the next version to have sensors capable of detecting very thin obstacles like wires and threads," he told AFP. "The coating also needs to be waterproof," he said. Slim and serious, Rego was inspired to help when, years ago, he saw a visually impaired woman fall in a busy street in downtown Maputo, said his mother, Helena Inacio. "Seeing that woman on the ground disturbed him. He vowed that he would create glasses," she told AFP. She had asked: "'Glasses for what? So that blind people can see?' He said, 'No, to give direction.'" "I thought it was fantasy," Inacio said. Rego moved his lab out of his bedroom for better ventilation after a health scare led a doctor to warn about the risks of fumes from his soldering work. "I had health problems and after an X-ray, they said there were some spots on my lungs which might have been caused by chemical fumes, like tin. It was temporary, but I must always take precautions," he said. Independence Rego's own vision is to secure partnerships that will allow him to one day produce and distribute his glasses across his impoverished country, where nearly 2.7 million people suffer vision loss, according to the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. Chau, who lost his sight after falling ill in 2005 and undergoing treatment in hospital, has made some suggestions for the next iteration. "I told him to first improve the roadside verification system," he said. He would also like a sensor that can detect the pools of stagnant water that are common in his area. And, if possible, a way for detected obstacles to be identified. "A system that communicates... about what kind of obstacle is in front of me, if it is a human being, a car," he said. "If the glasses are made the way I suggest, it will help us a lot, me and many other visually impaired people out there," said Chau. When they are in production and he can get his own pair, the glasses will give Chau a new lease of life, said his wife, Felizarda Nhampule. "Sometimes he stays here at home alone while I go out and do my errands. Sometimes he wants to go out somewhere but can't," she said. "With the glasses, he will be able to visit his friends and get rid of the boredom of staying at home. In case of an emergency, he can go and seek help from neighbours," she told AFP, flashing a smile. "So these glasses will be a great help to him and to us as a family." AFP
eNCA
2 days ago
- eNCA
In Norway's Arctic, meteorologists have a first-row seat to climate change
In the cold of the Norwegian Arctic, meteorologist Trond Robertsen manually recorded precipitation levels for over two decades, witnessing firsthand the effects of climate change. At 66, Robertsen retired after enduring spartan conditions during missions that totalled eight years on two islands of the Svalbard archipelago: Bjornoya (Bear Island) and Hogen. To reach the remote Bjornoya, where the only humans are the nine employees of the small weather station, the meteorologists have to fly in by helicopter as they are rotated on a six-month basis. "The idea is to not stay too long, because it's a different rhythm, and you are isolated," Robertsen told AFP. It is demanding work. "It's a 24/7 occupation," he said. "We are doing it all day, all night." The team worked shifts to cover all hours of the day, he explained. AFP | Olivier MORIN Weather observation starts in the early morning at 6:00 am. "It's manually done, then you have to go outside and check the bucket that is collecting precipitation," said Robertsen. "During wintertime you have to melt the snow and ice into water" to determine how much has fallen. The data is then transmitted the Norwegian Meteorological Institute in Tromso and Oslo. "This tiny little observation is actually quite crucial for the weather forecasting systems up north, because observations are so sparse from that area." Bjornoya sits in the middle of fishing grounds, and the weather reports published twice a day are closely followed by the fishing boats in the area. - Less ice, fewer bears - Since his first missions to the Arctic in the 1990s, Robertsen has witnessed the changing climate. "When I started going up north, there was a lot of ice. In the later years, it's less ice and fewer polar bears. You can see the climate change," he said. Polar bears have been classified as a vulnerable population since 1982 on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species, with the loss of Arctic sea ice the most pressing threat against the species. However, their precise numbers, are almost impossible to assess. AFP | Olivier MORIN In winter, employees of station always venture out in pairs and have to be armed due to the presence of polar bears, but according to Robertsen it's rarer to encounter them today. In April, during his last mission to the island, Robertsen had an accident while doing carpentry: he slipped and ended up cutting one finger clean off and half of another. Due to tough weather conditions, he had to wait some 26 hours before being evacuated by helicopter and transported to a hospital. "It was a heavy snowstorm coming in, only the day after the helicopter came," he recounted. Looking back, Robertsen does not regret the years spent under the austere living conditions. "The Arctic has given me so many experiences and memories so it is a small fee to pay back with my left little finger and part of my ring finger," he said. By Olivier Morin With Johanna Wastfelt In Stockholm
eNCA
4 days ago
- eNCA
More microplastics in glass bottles than plastic: study
PARIS - Drinks including water, soda, beer and wine sold in glass bottles contain more microplastics than those in plastic bottles, according to a surprising study released by France's food safety agency. Researchers have detected the tiny, mostly invisible pieces of plastic throughout the world, from in the air we breathe to the food we eat, as well as riddled throughout human bodies. There is still no direct evidence that this preponderance of plastic is harmful to human health, but a burgeoning field of research is aiming to measure its spread. Guillaume Duflos, research director at French food safety agency ANSES, told AFP the team sought to "investigate the quantity of microplastics in different types of drinks sold in France and examine the impact different containers can have". The researchers found an average of around 100 microplastic particles per litre in glass bottles of soft drinks, lemonade, iced tea and beer. That was five to 50 times higher than the rate detected in plastic bottles or metal cans. "We expected the opposite result," PhD student Iseline Chaib, who conducted the research, told AFP. AFP/File | SEBASTIEN BOZON "We then noticed that in the glass, the particles emerging from the samples were the same shape, colour and polymer composition -- so therefore the same plastic -- as the paint on the outside of the caps that seal the glass bottles," she said. The paint on the caps also had "tiny scratches, invisible to the naked eye, probably due to friction between the caps when there were stored," the agency said in a statement. This could then "release particles onto the surface of the caps", it added. - Wine fine - For water, both flat and sparkling, the amount of microplastic was relatively low in all cases, ranging from 4.5 particles per litre in glass bottles to 1.6 particles in plastic. Wine also contained few microplastics -- even glass bottles with caps. Duflos said the reason for this discrepancy "remains to be explained". Soft drinks however contained around 30 microplastics per litre, lemonade 40 and beer around 60. Because there is no reference level for a potentially toxic amount of microplastics, it was not possible to say whether these figures represent a health risk, ANSES said. But drink manufacturers could easily reduce the amount of microplastics shed by bottle caps, it added. The agency tested a cleaning method involving blowing the caps with air, then rinsing them with water and alcohol, which reduced contamination by 60 percent. The study released by ANSES was published online in the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis last month.
