Frozen at the North Pole

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A captain's tell-all about the world's largest Arctic expedition, this illuminating account blends seafaring adventure, natural history, and cutting-edge climate science. Atmospheric scientist Markus Rex recounts his year-long journey leading the MOSAiC expedition, the first of its kind, launched in 2019 by the Alfred Wegener Institute. This groundbreaking mission ventured into the Arctic's epicenter of climate change to gather crucial scientific data. Rex describes life aboard the Polarstern, an icebreaker ship frozen into the ice and carried by the Transpolar Drift. The team, isolated from the world, constructs "cities" on the ice to study the Arctic ecosystem, atmosphere, ocean, and sea ice under brutal conditions. They face terrifying storms, cracking ice, frostbite, and even Covid-19 quarantines. Amidst these challenges, heartwarming moments emerge, like Christmas parties on the ice and playful polar bears. Rex reflects on past expeditions, such as the ill-fated Franklin Expedition and Fridtjof Nansen's Fram expedition, while addressing urgent questions about climate change's impact on the Arctic and the best ways to protect it. Interweaving history, science, and memoir, this gripping narrative highlights the teamwork required to tackle the climate crisis.