Ryder 2019 Expedition

The Ryder 2019 Expedition with the Swedish icebreaker (IB) Oden aims to investigate the development, over time, of sea ice, outlet glaciers, and ocean conditions in the marine realm of Ryder Glacier; more specifically in the Sherard Osborne Fjord and adjacent area of northern Nares Strait and southern Lincoln Sea. One of the scientific motivations is that the role of outlet glaciers, such as Ryder Glacier, draining the Greenland Ice Sheet into the ocean represents one essential, but poorly constrained, part of our understanding of future sea-level rise in a warming climate. The Ryder 2019 Expedition aims to collect multibeam bathymetry, sub-bottom profiles, and midwater sonar information in order to characterize the shape of the seafloor, the uppermost sediment properties and oceanographic layers in the water column. In addition, sediment coring, water sampling and measurements of water properties are planned. The project is a continuation of the Petermann 2015 Expedition successfully completed with IB Oden in 2015. During the Petermann 2015 Expedition, the Petermann Fjord and adjacent area of Hall Basin were investigated. The setup for the Ryder 2019 Expedition is nearly identical, although there is no marine reflection seismic component included this time. The expedition also include field work on land, including collection of drift wood, sampling of lake sediments and studies of ecology.