“The Open Seminar on the Northern Sea Route from the Latest Arctic Research Works” was held on March 10th, 2017 in Tokyo jointly hosted by ArCS and the Japan Arctic Research Network Center (J-ARC Net).
This seminar aimed at introducing the latest research outcomes by ArCS research groups of Theme-1 and Theme-7 through an interdisciplinary program. Here, Theme-1 focused on weather and sea-ice forecast with user engagement, and Theme-7 focused on sustainable development with people and community in the Arctic. The seminar was consisted of three parts namely,
Part-1: Overview of the latest politics, natural resource development and maritime activities in the Arctic. Here, overview of the J-ARC Net activities, politics in the Arctic, perspective of the Northern Sea Route, perspective of Arctic oil and natural gas development, and the project overview of the Yamal LNG transport, were presented.
Part-2: Natural science and engineering research related to the Northern Sea Route. Here, advanced method of detecting ice thickness by satellite, Arctic sea ice prediction model, ship routing system with Arctic Data archive System, characteristics of ocean waves in the Arctic, and characteristics of sailing speed and ice condition of the Northern Sea Route, were presented
Part-3: Perspective of holistic Arctic research. Here, perspective of the development of Arctic weather forecast model, research tasks for the development of Northern Sea Route, and perspective for interdisciplinary research on sustainable use of the Arctic, were presented.
In the seminar, 48 participants from industry, public sector, mass-media and researchers were gathered and a broad range of discussion was also carried out.
Natsuhiko Otsuka (Hokkaido University / A member of Theme 7)
Snap shot of the seminar
Shinichiro Tabata, the Principal Investigator of Theme 7, giving a presentation during the third part of the seminar
