Life on a remote Arctic research station | Esther Horvath | TEDxDanubia

As a six-year-old girl being born in Hungary behind the Iron Curtain, I loved watching the snow-covered mountains of the Alps just beyond the border, the border which we were not allowed to cross. One mountain, especially Schneeberg Snow Mountain, was covered with snow all year round. It was magical. Even on the hottest summer days, the snow was shining on its peak. Only after the Iron Curtain fell and I was an adult, I could travel to Schneeberg, the mountain I had longed to hike for so long. And from my greatest surprise, I discovered that the snow in the summer was not snow at all. It was a shining white stone on its peak. If we observe things from a distance, we can have an image of the truth, which might be completely far away from reality. But if we get close, we discover the truth, the reality may be something completely different. As a documentary photographer, my goal is to bring this truth closer to people. I travel to the furthest places of the planet, to the Arctic and Antarctica, to document scientific expeditions. Not everyone can journey to those places, but to understand its reality is essential to understand what is happening in the planet. Exactly 10 years ago in 2015, the year when the Paris Agreement was signed, I traveled for my very first polar expedition. And since then, I documented 27, including one place which is so dear to my heart. New Olison Research Station in Svalbard, the Norwegian Arctic. I traveled there as a photographer for the Alfred Wegener Institute, and I'm hosted there by the French-German Arctic Research Base Avipav. Svalbard is the epicenter of global warming. Since 1993, winter average temperature has risen here by six to eight Celsius. We know this because scientists of Alfred Wegener Institute conduct atmospheric research, launching a weather balloon every single day, even today. We can understand climate change only if we look at long-term observations, if we look at the data of the dedicated people who are collecting vital data for humanity. These are the stories I'm interested in. I want to bring the scientists into light who often work in shadows. New Olison Research Station is the northernmost community of the planet. In 1963, it was a mining town almost for 50 years. In 1963, it turned into a scientific hub under the leadership of Norway the Norwegian Polar Institute and Kings Bay. Climate and environmental research is happening here. Scientists, engineers, support staff work and live here, far away from their families and friends. No civilians live here. They are right there where the changes are happening, close to death. I see myself as a messenger bringing their findings to people. They live there between one and a half year up to 10 years in this remote place. They live and work in the land of polar bear where safety is key to their survival. They have to do polar bear safety training regularly. On the snow-covered glaciers and slopes, avalanche can be triggered very quickly. They train together because in a case of an emergency, they have to count on each other. We all know that the Arctic is the fastest changing environment of our planet, but who are the scientists behind the data? I want to show their faces. Hege, changing air filters at Zeppelin Observatory. Arndt, changing the precipitation bucket for meteorological observation. This is one of the longest running observations run by the Norwegian Polar Institute since 1967. Lola collects algae for sea urchins living in the marine lab. Fike transfers the data from the permafrost station. Alex, who is getting ready for her dive in minus one Celsius degree water to collect samples from the seafloor. 40 people live in this town and making sure that long-term observations are running even in the polar night which lasts for four months. Being far away from their loved ones' social life is very important. Getting together after long working days like going out in small huts for painting. There are four legged friends in town as well and they are very much loved and taken care by the entire community. Dogs in remote places are very important for well-being and mental health. I'm so happy to be a photographer because many events I can skip and having an excuse that I'm so sorry but I will not do this because I have to photograph it and one of them is the ice bathing. I think I will never ever do that. On that day it was minus 29 and the water was minus 1.8 Celsius. In the arctic the average temperature is rising three to four times faster. In Svalbard this is seven times faster in a place with no industry and only 3 000 inhabitants on the entire archipelago. Infrastructure here is built on permafrost, the frozen ground which is thawing. Houses become unstable and requiring new foundations. This is visible in the entire arctic and entire indigenous communities have to be relocated. New Olison and Svalbard doesn't have an indigenous community. It is an outpost for scientists observing the fastest changing environment of our planet. It is a hub for polar exploration, a gateway to the north pole. Roald Amundsen, the Norwegian explorer, started his expedition 99 years ago with his team and with the Norge airship flying over the north pole from here. The mast of the airship is still standing there and the red light leads scientists back into town during the dark winter months. From this era of the exploration we don't know many, if any, female scientists or explorers. Today I work with incredible female scientists and I want to highlight their work like Susanna, Julia, Joanna, Julia, Ingrid, Fike, Charlotte, Signa Maria, Verena, Apolline. The life follows here the rhythm of the calendar to maintain a sense of home. Locals are celebrating festivals and holidays. On special events you have to wear a costume which you can borrow from the local costume storage. You will definitely need one if you are the angel during the Nordic Santa Lucia festival. On special occasion a dinner is served in the Amundsen villa where Roald Amundsen stayed during his expeditions. But the most touching event of all is the memorial for the 21 men who died here during the last mining accident in 1962 after which the town transformed into a scientific hub. Locals are walking in quietness with lamps to the monument remembering them. New Olisond is located in Kongsfjorden, the fjord which used to be frozen and scientists and residents could cross it by skis. This is not happening for the past 10 years. Locals can cross the fjord only by boat. Warmer waters and warmer air temperature prevent the fjord from freezing. Warmer waters also bring invasive species with it. In 2022 biologists of Alfred Wegener Institute discovered helmet jellyfish for the very first time. An invasive species from warmer waters which feeds faster, reproduces faster and destroys the slower paced ecosystem here. The goal of my work is to bring the truth closer to people even if it's far away. That you don't think there is snow on the top of Schneeberg all year round. That we know the truth and we can take well-informed decisions for ourselves, for humanity and for the future of the planet. Thank you so much.