Simone Moretti, a researcher who will join the CNR-ISP from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, has been awarded a five-year European Research Council (ERC) grant for the SORBETTO project.

The goal: to understand how ocean warming and deoxygenation are changing Antarctic ecosystems by combining historical and modern biological collections, spanning a century of polar exploration, with innovative geochemical and morpho-densitometric techniques based on a mobile X-ray microtomography laboratory. “Historical collections offer us a unique window into how these organisms have already responded to environmental changes,” Moretti explains. “That is where we can start to build reliable models of their future.”

An important achievement for Italian polar research and a step forward in understanding and protecting one of the planet’s most vulnerable ecosystems. - Press release

In 2027, Dirigibile Italia, one of the observatories contributing to the Ny-Ålesund Research Station, managed by CNR, will celebrate 30 years of continuous, multidisciplinary scientific activity in Svalbard. To celebrate this important milestone, the CNR is promoting a dedicated Special Issue that will be co-published in two Elsevier journals: Cold Regions Science and Technology and Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans
Contributions from research groups that have received support or collaborated with Dirigibile Italia over the past decades are particularly welcome. Submission deadline: September 30, 2026
For further information: Special Issue Dirigibile 

Una ricerca, svolta dal Cnr-Isp in collaborazione con Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia, Università degli Studi di Perugia e altri istituti di ricerca internazionali, ha rilevato il bromato, un composto chimico del bromo, nel manto nevoso delle Svalbard. Lo studio, pubblicato su Science Advances, dimostra che la neve che si accumula in Artico è un reattore chimico naturale, con un forte impatto sui cicli atmosferici di questa regione - Comunicato Stampa CNR

The European Commission in association with the European External Action Service will organise the EU Arctic Forum, Indigenous Peoples’ Dialogue and Arctic Youth Dialogue in Brussels on 1-2 September 2026, with possible side events on 3 September.

A broad range of Arctic stakeholders representing governments, international organisations, civil society, industry, research, indigenous and local communities will feed into the discussions. Young and indigenous perspectives will feature prominently throughout the events.