13 years after the fall of the berlin wall nov 9th on d w. this is the norwegian island of spits back and located in the spiral occupy logo in the arctic ocean. the town of new also is home to more than a dozen permanent scientific research centers it's the northernmost settlement of its kind in the entire world. right now some of our scientists are getting ready to start their working day.

we do not serve we're going to do some field research just off the lesson that when we leave the village we have to take our rifles because of the polar bears you know here there are more bears on fall bar than people who get about 3000 are there sort of a simple affair if they attack it can be life threatening we have to be ready as limbs of heart. research station manager have skied and meteorologist marion ma to really face this sort of danger every day. most of the research that's done here focuses on the local environment particularly the climate. more than 60 percent of the on. capella ago is covered by.

the scientists observe and record any changes in this pristine arctic environment. this data can then be applied to the north pole region and the rest of the world. shorter and merriam have left the village and will now head out into the wild but 1st beyond to loads the rifle with 4 cartridges just to be on the safe side. then the scientists move into polar bear territory there on their way to one of the measuring stations that marion looks after. these instruments measure wind speed and wind direction we close to the ground marian checks to make sure that the equipment is functioning properly in this harsh environment.

meanwhile marine biologist clara hopper is packing for a trip to the arctic ocean she hopes that the weather will be good some good fun said he. best it's always best to be out in the water when there's no wind and the equipment has to be lowered and raised versatile if those as buffeted by the wind it's harder to keep everything steady but i understood you to heighten and certainly like weather and the forecast for tomorrow looks quite abandoned. better from all and you can schoolgirls. doctoral students caravan for also go along on this trip the 2 scientists are getting their testing equipment ready now so they won't have to do it on board the ship tomorrow. they'll try. to collect as many water samples as possible.

so couldn't when there was a temperature is just below 0 degrees celcius is the chart from. this data is from yesterday and the surface water is just around 0 and below that it drops down to minus 0.3. the weather forecast turns out to be correct clear skies not much wind and a carm sea. klara outlines the focus of their research. that's all that's futile we're studying phytoplankton the microscopic plants that grow on the ocean surface to find out what influences their growth and productivity

and food yes that's because these firefighters have one turn the other cornerstone of the arctic food web which provides nourishment for fish polar bears and other wildlife on efficient we want to see how the environment and climate change affect these organisms it's nice to see that so for that in our. climate change is a major focus of a joint french and german research facility new oleson. right now mary and those preparing a device that will carry out measurements from the atmosphere at an altitude of up to 30 kilometers the probe is sent up 4 times a day using a weather balloon. but 1st she has to calibrate the probe she plugs it into a chamber that creates conditions of 100 percent humidity these atmosphere tests might seem straight. just sending up

a balloon but it's not as easy as it sounds. to shoot. if you don't attach the balloon to the unwinding device properly the balloon can tear off our going to end of that's when the the balloon will drift sideways and stead of upward and the progress in front of you so if there's a lot that can go wrong as an escape route to crimes for which you come. next marion compares the temperature sensors on the measuring device with of the moment is at this weather station if the data matches the probe is ready to go and the information that it puts out can be used by weather forecasters worldwide. meanwhile clodhopper is preparing a water collection container. she

and her colleagues uses steel cable to lower the device which will take water samples of various depths. clara is particularly interested in finding samples of plankton also called micro algae. as soon as they bring the container back up they start analyzing its contents. it's a good thing that they prepare the individual files in advance because it's cold out here. at the end where this thing at the end of the day with freezing up in the. back they put up with the weather because the study of micro provides crucial data. required we didn't put these. innocence pretty is

about how all of the oxygen and they have the atmosphere and it's what you know every 2nd breath that we take and even see also absolutely a lot of carbon dioxide that's 5. carbon dioxide contributes to climate change. back at the research facility marion is getting ready to fill how weather balloon with helium. she's done this hundreds of times but she still gets a kick out of it. the line is made of highly elastic rubber it will have to withstand enormous fluctuations in air pressure as it rises through the atmosphere. all set.

it's essential to make sure that the measuring device isn't damaged during takeoff . looks good so fond. o. for the balloons going straight up because there's not much wind. on it will just disappear into the clouds. as the balloon moves towards a target down to toot of about 30 kilometers the device attached to it sends back data including temperature humidity and air pressure. but the scientists are doing much more than just measuring weather conditions they're also studying climate change and how it affects the environment and analyzing the interaction between the ocean and the atmosphere. how do the component parts of iraq. ecosystem work together and how are they being altered by

global warming it's a shoes task but the researchers here at spitzbergen are up to it. it's. clar well trying to estimate the total amount of microbes in this part of the ocean it's spring now and the organisms a multiplying on a massive scale. only experts can spot the algae in this tube full of murky water. good oh yes and right now we're at the height of the spring algal blooms that's when they grow quickly and they're biomass is that it's a peak is to be your muscle harmed by it's right when trees and learn turn green

all at once. and it's been like this with 2 or 3 weeks now and it'll probably start dropping off next week you know to get them as they are that we were here we completely missed the spring bloom just like i see water to us my students didn't believe that there was any such thing as a bloom so we're always happy when we catch it in time out from as and we're all there was the ocean. but what if the water gets rough out here. we have as a voter here i've never been seasick as is can i have a very sturdy stomach it has happened when i'm down in the antarctic with 13 metre waves i think it's great it just was that.

the sea is pretty calm today and that's good news for the crew. marian checks in on her weather balloon. this is all so far it's looking good for the probe is sending back data and the balloon has now reached an altitude of 12 kilometers and i assume that it will continue to fly and transmit it. by then and then she keeps an eye on the balloon as it rises. you know others on this it's already reached the stratosphere the temperature is warmer there because of the layer of ozone molecules. temperature is now minus $42.00 degrees celsius which is fairly warm so in winter the temperatures can drop to minus 80 but we're meters so in the stratosphere it's already summer which totals of so much. that's confirmed by the data. really wasn't it's essential for us to take

measurements that are highly accurate and properly calibrated. that data is not just used for weather forecasts but it's also a key part of our climate research and despite major trends in the climate we have to use data that's reliable and verifiable but. during the winter about 30 people live in new girl or sun most of the most scientists from all over the world the population increases to more than 100 and some of. which station manager. he talks to marion about current weather conditions since a lot of their research is conducted outside. we asked her about the worst weather she's seen here. to the middle of the start and the most extreme case was when we had rain one winter it was january. and here we were at 80 degrees

north latitude inside the arctic circle and it was raining but not an artist want to make what was that like. it was like experiencing global warming by the wife of. these 3 scientists from the french german research station also studying the effects of global warming today they headed out to conduct experiments on snow. the bore 3 are microbiologists bad while bad painter alex holland and rose later. you wouldn't expect to see people travelling by bicycle in the arctic but the research is can't you snowmobiles right now the snow is melting and it's too soft. rose is not happy about that climb straight in that we can use his name and because

it makes it easy to catch up to us. however we do have alternatives and favorites now completely clear so we can use bikes to get up we can use an electric car as we can't use any mantra inside 3 favorite contamination it does take more time that you have to be flexible on your working enough to condition. flexibility is also an important part of modern matterless job because much of her work depends on the weather today she was shadow to replace a radiation measuring device but that's not going to happen. i don't want to ruin my measurements by leaving footprints we not only measure thermal radiation but also reflected radiation which tells us a lot about soil conditions affect you know reflects a lot of light but not when it starts. we've done

a lot of tests on the annual farm me schmidt's and amendment in tova snow is melting right now and footprints produce a darker pattern on the ground and that influences the radiation measurements. misnomer today he can start by and for those so that i'm not going to replace the device today just fyi wait until the snow is completely gone and there's nearby shyness bellotti for a pic of me in that i mean you over the past few years we've noticed that the thought has been starting earlier louder. that's an obvious indication of climate change and we can see it right here come on in because we have been working at this research station for nearly 20 years or early notice these changes are in the out and the article says that's a major cause for concern it's very sad and cold wished him.

while ben was getting ready to take some snow samples. the temperature is 3 degrees above freezing that's 10 degrees celsius higher than normal for early may and. is collecting samples of microorganisms is wearing special clothing so that it doesn't contaminate the snow this is a key part of the scientists research. that particularly interested in finding out what sorts of single celled organisms are present in the snow that's fallen here. rose keeps an eye out for polar bass that tough to spot against the snowy background. later back in the bar trade the snow. smelted listen polls are sorted numbered and packed in boxes

but what's so important about these samples from spitzbergen bedrock or just as easily have collected some snow in the french alps. here for poor people in this part of the arctic offered the warming trend is much stronger than it is in the rest of europe and walked on and we have the data to prove that so spitzbergen provides an excellent environment for us to study the effects of climate change or something and we can see those objects more clearly here than elsewhere. live fillets more we can take measurements that are more accurate because there aren't a lot of people here this one over him or he quickly before more it's a pristine environment. and that will help us to study the snow content even more effectively with it. comes from for this phenomenon. if your aunt's glaziers and mountains create a unique look are

a tree where scientists can study the effects of human activity on the environment . here clara harper and claire of all of our analyzing the water samples that they took yesterday clara really enjoys this part of her research. if i may be a moment it's always exciting to look at things under the microscope. there's containers of water don't seem very interesting at 1st but then you run the water through the filters sit down and take a closer look and there are lots of really beautiful shapes. and i really enjoy this lack. there. of course there's a serious side to this research the scientists are studying the impact that humans have on the environment. right now my. rian is on her way to the

local air filter to carry out some tests. these high powered radio telescopes gather data from space now the researchers are going to launch a drone that's full of sensitive sensors that measure weather conditions of the drone data it will supplement the information that's gathered by marian's balloon device. and says that she's impressed with this kind of technology. this is told it's great i think it's exciting and all of our researchers contribute something different to these projects we all work together for and i think that's wonderful. that you know. the marine biologists are an important part of the

team their research on trying tom growth plays an important role in determining the effects of climate change on the environment. the 2 researchers often spend 12 hours or more every day in the laboratory. this time of year there's plenty of daylight klara explains the significance of our work . so i know for only here on one hand we're trying to understand how climate change affects micro and not end here for now a day secular also be applied to other areas like the north sea. but at the same time it's important to remember that major european fishing grounds on moving north . so if there are big changes in the ecosystem and it can no longer provide

a proper environment for fish it's going to affect all of us. the researchers here on spitsbergen are trying to predict what those effects might be some of the changes in the local environment may later expand to include other parts of the earth. ski the head of the research station is one aware of the situation. that he's walked here longer than anyone else often under difficult conditions. from a familiar i miss my family and my friends and our continent i also miss seeing trees and plants. the landscape is beautiful of course of the miss them but there's not a lot of vegetation. that's sort of. new all us and boasts the world's northernmost post-office it's

a remote region but marian says that the scientists who come from 11 different countries have created their own community here. and. these american researchers are testing a captive balloon that collects weather data barrin of course takes an active interest in their work. best way to share information because they understand that everyone here has to work together to solve scientific problems to. the researches don't need high tech equipment to tell them that the annual thought is underway they can see for themselves. this year the snow and i started to melt early and fall too quickly.

for decades marion has been collecting data that indicates that global warming is progressing rapidly. since hits of el monte we've been observing these phenomenon for the last 20 years this graph shows the average annual temperature here which has risen at a rate of about $1.00 degrees celsius per decade and almost 6 caught because that's a much larger increase than we've seen for the rest of the world. for. the earth's average temperature has risen by about one degree celsius over 100 years. but here on spitsbergen the increase was 1.6 degrees in just 10 years.

the arctic region is warming up faster than anywhere else and the out. here in new all are certain the world's northernmost research facility scientists work together to analyze the changes that are taking place in the earth's environment. at the end of the day they often get together to enjoy the midnight sun and forget about work for a while. these scientists are committed to their various projects because they are concerned about the future of the planet. they carry out their work in the snowy world on us. in the atmosphere.

and in the ice cold waters of the arctic ocean. it.

is quite as simple as it sinks. to understand the world better we need to take a closer. experience knowledge to.

play explore uniform landscape and industrial area to. our lives vacation destination. insiders to. close in this part of this future and i think that the small solace has great potential for. a small state that house all marked off or. led to 60 minutes d.w. . take a trip. go christmas market hopping with dublin come and look at the top of her hotel good for him and a guest. just tell us which german street is your favorite. what's the most beautiful place in germany. what would you like to explore most of. chicken

d.w. dot com slash trouble good luck and enjoy. playing . after the fall of the berlin november night.

this is d w. news live from bundy poland's ruling conservative law and justice party wins the general election according to an exit poll the poll shows that the party has expanded its majority the result comes after introduced controversial judicial reform or so coming up turkey pushes on with its offensive in northern syria german chancellor angela merkel tells the turkey's president the assault must stop as mediately a syrian government troops get set should have growing along of course.