RUSALCA 2004 Stations

The Russian-American Long-term Census of the Arctic (RUSALCA) is an extensive activity that is being conducted jointly with the Russian Academy of Science (RAS). This field program is built around ship-based cruises to the Bering and Chukchi Sea region that are planned to occur every 4 years. The first of these cruises was in summer 2004. Cruise objectives are to determine the physical and nutrient state of the water column and provide an initial census of key pelagic and benthic biota. Additional field activities may occur between the major cruises utilizing ships of opportunity. Detecting ecological change and relating it to climate change requires a very long time horizon. Fortunately, there have been a few previous studies in the region to provide historical context and there is likely to be data from Russia that has not been made available to the US. Based on the historical data and new observations, it is anticipated that over the next decade, a clear set of relationships between physical environment and ecosystem response will be evident. To the extent possible, these relationships will be tested in climate-ecosystem models.