Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of RAS is working on the creation of an automated system of under-ice soundings, designed to monitor the state of the marine environment and meteorological parameters in the Arctic. This was announced on May 17 during the XVI All-Russian Scientific-Technical Conference "Modern Methods and Means of Oceanological Research" (MSOI-2019) by Alexander Ostrovsky, Head of the Ocean Acoustics Laboratory, IO RAS.

During the long polar night, the apparatus being developed will automatically measure the vertical profiles of the flow velocity, temperature and salinity of the water, as well as ice thickness. Monitoring data obtained promptly via satellite communication channel can be used to prepare diagnostic and prognostic materials for hydrometeorological services for marine activities, for scientific research and forecast of the state of the natural environment of the Arctic Ocean. The autonomous ice stations being developed are also intended to monitor natural and man-made anomalies, prevent natural disasters and man-made disasters.

This system will become the prototype of the Russian drifting ocean ice stations, which will ensure operational monitoring of the state of the marine environment of the Arctic waters, including along the Northern Sea Route, for the environmentally sustainable development of the region.

Conference of MSOI-2019, organized by Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of RAS with the participation of N.E. Bauman MSTU, with the support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, has been held every two years for more than 30 years and is a unique scientific forum in Russia in the field of oceanology.