"Research at the Ends of the Earth – Expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic"

Lecture event on 7 October 2026 at the Panometer in Leipzig

The polar regions have always held an enormous appeal and fascination for humankind. Historic expeditions led by James Cook, Roald Amundsen and Ernest Shackleton remain widely known to this day. Yet even today, researchers are continually drawn to the most remote regions of our planet to investigate the complex interrelationships within it.

On 7 October, three scientists spoke at the Panometer Leipzig about their own expeditions, research and projects in the polar regions. They spoke of research voyages to the Arctic aboard the Polarstern, of an expedition by sailing ship to the remote Danger Islands in Antarctica, and gave a glimpse of a future research project that will bring together scientists from all over the world from 2027 onwards.

The entertaining talks took place against the backdrop of Yadegar Asisi’s 360° panorama *ANTARCTICA* and were accompanied by a wealth of photographs and other visual material.

Reports were provided by:

Prof. Dr Andreas Macke, Director of the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research in Leipzig
In 2019 and 2020, the MOSAiC expedition – the largest Arctic expedition of all time – took place. The German research icebreaker Polarstern spent more than a year in the Arctic, carrying a total of over 400 people across five legs, to investigate the epicentre of climate change in greater detail. During the winter months, the research vessel was trapped in the ice, thereby enabling extensive research that would scarcely have been possible under other conditions. In preparation for this extensive expedition, a one-month preparatory expedition was carried out as early as 2017 under the leadership of Prof. Andreas Macke, Director of the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research in Leipzig. The research icebreaker was moored to an ice floe and drifted with it through the Arctic. Thanks to this successful trial, scientific and logistical experience was gained for the subsequent MOSAiC expedition. At the Panometer Leipzig, Prof. Andreas Macke spoke about both his experiences during the preparatory campaign and the MOSAiC expedition, in which his institute was involved throughout the entire duration of the expedition.

Fritz Hertel, an ecologist with the Polar Team at the Federal Environment Agency in Dessau
Just last year, a spectacular expedition took place in Antarctica. On board an aluminium sailing yacht – the Malizia Explorer – an expedition team led by professional sailor Boris Herrmann set off for the Danger Islands, an archipelago that has been under Germany’s care since 2024. The Danger Islands are renowned for their vast penguin colonies, including the world’s largest colony of Adélie penguins. The aim of the expedition is the long-term monitoring and protection of penguin and seabird colonies, which involves mapping breeding sites, tagging penguins and taking samples for the analysis of pollutants. Fritz Hertel from the Federal Environment Agency in Dessau was the driving force behind the expedition and one of the seven scientists on board the Malizia Explorer. On 7 October, he spoke about his personal experiences and the scientific work carried out during this extraordinary expedition.
(The ZDF, amongst others, will be reporting on this expedition on 8 November 2026 at 4.15 pm in a 45-minute documentary.)

Prof. Dr Stefanie Arndt, sea ice physicist at the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven
Changes in Antarctica have an impact on the climate, weather and ecosystems far beyond the South Polar region. At the same time, this habitat at the edge of the world is changing faster than science can understand the underlying mechanisms. This is precisely where the forthcoming international research initiative, Antarctica InSync, comes in: researchers from numerous countries and a wide range of disciplines aim to better coordinate their observations between 2027 and 2029 and, for the first time, study Antarctica even more intensively as an integrated system – from the ice, through the ocean and the atmosphere, to plankton, animals and material cycles. During the special event at the Panometer in Leipzig, Dr Stefanie Arndt from the renowned Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven provided insights into one of the most fascinating and least understood regions of our planet. She explained why more precise observation of Antarctica is necessary to better understand how the Earth will change in the future.