Hanna Farnelid

Reaching areas that have been largely unexplored is pure magic

CHANGE Nr 1 2024 | For 67 days, Hanna Farnelid travelled on the ice breaker Oden, to study the ocean’s ecosystem at the very northernmost latitudes. The international polar expedition that she was part of is unique of its kind, with several ships covering different parts of the Arctic over three years, in order to map the status of and changes in the ecosystems. “By studying the Arctic, we can gain a better understanding of climate change, both there and across the rest of the globe”, she says.

A polar bear
One of the many memorable moments in the Arctic

After nearly two months at sea and with daylight around the clock, Hanna Farnelid, associate professor of marine ecology, finally got to see the sun set among the ice floes, on the last day of sampling.

“It was incredibly beautiful, and we even got to see a curious polar bear, which came wandering across the ice. This is one of my strongest memories, along with the time we approached northern Greenland, and saw land for the first time in weeks”, Hanna recalls.

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Hanna Farnelid

Associate Professor of Marine Ecology

Hanna Farnelid is an associate professor at the Department of Biology and Environmental Science. She is also the director of the Swedish Institute for the Marine Environment, which is hosted by six different universities in Sweden and brings together expertise in marine environmental research. Her research focuses on bacteria and phytoplankton in aquatic environments. She is interested in understanding the distribution, species composition, and function of some of the smallest but most significant organisms in the world’s oceans.

Funds awarded since 2017:

SEK 5.9 million; funder: the Swedish Research Council

SEK 4 million; funders: Formas, the Crafoord Foundation, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Carl Trygger Foundation, and the Magnus Bergvall Foundation.

 

 

She describes the Arctic as a fascinating world of blue and white, where the ice has many shades, from transparent to white or turquoise. But the fascinating Arctic environment is on the cusp of great change, warming four times faster than the global average – and what is happening there will affect the entire planet. The sea ice surface has halved in the last 30 years, which greatly impacts the conditions for life.

Half of all the oxygen in our atmosphere is produced in the ocean.

Hanna Farnelid

Hanna’s research in marine ecology focuses on precisely this: trying to understand what is going on in our oceans. She is particularly interested in studying microorganisms and how they are affected by the ongoing climate changes, since microorganisms in general, and phytoplankton in particular, are crucial for producing oxygen and storing carbon dioxide through photosynthesis.

Hanna and her colleagues use DNA technology to understand what different microorganisms there are and what they do – something she likens to detective work.

“Half of all the oxygen in our atmosphere is produced in the ocean. I investigate the base of the marine food web, that is, microorganisms such as phytoplankton. Microorganisms are essential for all life in the ocean. With climate change, it’s also important to look at the distribution of different and new species. I focus a lot on biodiversity – that is the biological diversity of nature – and how adaptable ecosystems are to environmental changes.”

Expedition with researchers from all over the world

The two months on Oden was part of the umbrella polar expedition Synoptic Arctic Survey, which, in turn, is part of an international collaboration in which Linnaeus University is involved. Over three years, several ships are covering different parts of the Arctic, to collect data and map the status of and changes in the ecosystems.

“In Oden, Sweden has the world’s most powerful icebreaker, equipped to support research on board. Thanks to Oden, we’ve been able to cover particularly inaccessible areas in the central Arctic”, says Hanna.

In total, there were about thirty researchers from institutions in Sweden and around the world on board, who collected data and took samples. Despite meticulous preparations, it was difficult to know in advance what the journey would be like, or if they would even reach their destination, as the weather in the Arctic is very unpredictable and changes rapidly.

“An expedition of this kind requires years of planning and preparation, but even so, everything can change from day to day. The ice could be too thick for us to be able to reach a sampling station, or there would be sudden fog.”

Now, several years of studying the samples and data collected lies ahead; building a foundational understanding of the current changes in the Arctic and how they affect other parts of the globe.

“Together with the other researchers and the rest of the polar expeditions we hope that after our analyses, we’ll be able to get a full picture of how the current climate changes are affecting the Arctic. I’ve got my work cut out for me for at least five years ahead”, says Hanna.

Record in new grants

At the end of 2023, Hanna Farnelid and her colleagues at the frontier research environment Linnaeus University Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial model Systems (EEMiS) received five major grants for scientific research from the Swedish Research Council.

It’s a record for us and incredibly gratifying. It shows that Linnaeus University and our research are competitive.

Hanna Farnelid

“It’s a record for us and incredibly gratifying. It shows that Linnaeus University and our research are competitive. Our research environment is also highly international, with doctoral students from all over the world and collaborations across Europe, the US and Asia. I definitely think that our collaborations are part of what makes us so strong in our field, and what enables us to produce innovative and successful research and drive development forward.”

Hanna wearing a white lab coat

Returning to the Arctic is tempting to Hanna, but first she is going to spend the coming years analysing the samples of ice and water that were collected on the last expedition.

“It would definitely be a dream to go back. It’s pure magic to reach areas that have been largely unexplored” she says, and continues:

“I have many thoughts about what will happen in the future, but I actually feel hopeful after the expedition. The key to being able to influence what happens with the climate is to learn more about how our planet works, and if we’re to be able to make a difference and adapt to the new conditions, this knowledge needs to be spread.”