August 2004 marked the beginning of a new chapter in the history of Arctic exploration and research as three icebreakers headed toward the North Pole on an expedition to study the geological history of the Arctic Ocean. 

URI Ocean Engineering Professor Kate Moran is one of two chief scientists leading the expedition; the other is Dr. Jan Backman of Stockholm University in Sweden. Other URI oceanographers taking part in the expedition are geologists Dr. John Farrell and Matthew O’Regan and microbiologist Dr. David Smith. Kathy Couchon, a middle-school teacher from Narragansett, R.I., will also participate in the expedition as part of a research and mentoring program for teachers based at URI/GSO.

The primary objective of the Arctic Coring Expedition (ACEX) is to drill several hundred meters into the sediments of the Lomonosov Ridge, an underwater mountain chain. This operation is the most ambitious of its kind ever attempted in such a hostile environment.

By analyzing samples from the 500-meter-thick sediment on top of the ridge, scientists will reconstruct the climatic and environmental history of the Arctic over the past 50 million years. The Arctic plays a fundamental role in regulating the planet’s climate, and scientists hope to gain significant information about ancient climate that may provide insight into the effects of future climate change.