The expedition in numbers

Facts and figures about the largest Arctic research expedition in history:

The factsheet on MOSAiC sustainability is available as PDF here.

The MOSAiC factsheet "The expedition in numbers" is also available for download.

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389 days

The expedition‘s duration was 389 days.

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7icebreakers/ships

During the expedition, RV Polarstern was resupplied by 6 additional icebreakers and research ships from Russia and Germany.

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442 experts

Thoughout the year, a total of 442 experts travelled to the Arctic, and were exchanged in phases.

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20 nations

The following 20 nations are involved in the expedition:

See 20 nations


MOSAiC in numbers
156 km

During her first drift Polarstern reaches 88°36’ North, just 156 kilometres from the North Pole.

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10 months

The Polarstern spent more than 10 months of the expedition frozen solid in the ice.

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300 days

The MOSAiC team conducted research on the first MOSAiC floe for 300 days.

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30 days

For a further 30 days, the team conducted research on the floe 2.0.


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1500 km

Polarstern was up to 1500 km from the nearest human settlement.

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3400 km

Polarstern drifted a 3400 km on a zigzagging course.

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30 cm

The MOSAiC floe was only 30 cm thick beneath former melt ponds, but its solid core was up to several metres thick.

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50 km

247 monitoring stations drifted as far as 50 km from Polarstern.


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60 polar bears

More than 60 polar bears were sighted near the Polarstern.

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-42 ºC

-42.3 °C, the lowest temperature encountered on the expedition, was reached on 10 March 2020.

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36278 m

36,278 m: the altitude of the highest measurements taken in the atmosphere.

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4297 m

4,297 m: the deepest point in the ocean at which the expedition took measurements.


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300 people

More than 300 people worked in the background to make the expedition possible.

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39 years

The average age of participating researchers was 39 years.

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200000

The expedition's operating costs alone were roughly 200000 Euro per day (not including the costs for the instruments or researchers).

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0

To date, there has never been a comparable expedition in the central Arctic.