NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region

Tags: permafrost degradation, remote sensing, UAV, citizen science

Objective(s): The aim of the citizen science project UndercoverEisAgenten is to study permafrost changes in the Arctic to raise awareness of these environmental changes and strengthen the data basis for science. Students from Moose Kerr school in Aklavik will design their own permafrost change related research questions and work with our research team to collect high-resolution images from the land surface with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV).

Project Description: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No. 5987. The aim of the citizen science project UndercoverEisAgenten is to study permafrost changes in the Arctic to raise awareness of these environmental changes and strengthen the data basis for science. Students from Moose Kerr school in Aklavik will design their own permafrost change related research questions and work with our research team to collect high-resolution images from the land surface with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). In close collaboration with secondary schools in Germany, these images will then be processed and analyzed in small mapping tasks. This way, the project wants to promote Indigenous research questions, bring topics of climate change and permafrost change into the classroom and foster a transatlantic digital student exchange. Data collection will be done by using multiple photographic drones (UAV) from DJI, model Mavic Mini 2 (weight: 249 g): 1. The research team will give an introduction to permafrost research and the use of UAV to the students of Moose Kerr in their classroom. 2. The students will develop their own permafrost related research questions based on their personal observations of and experiences with permafrost degradation. 3. The research team will give a drone flight practice. 4. The research team will accompany the staff and students of Moose Kerr to the field to conduct their research and support them in scientific and technical issues. 5. The UAV will remain with the staff and students of Moose Kerr school until a next field visit in 2023. The students are encouraged to autonomously - and with the support of their teachers - repeatedly survey their sites of interest throughout that time. All flights will be carried out following the Canadian drone regulations (see "Adverse impact mitigation") and without harming the flora and fauna. In 2022 we established communication via e-mail and video conferencing with the Aklavik Hunters and Trappers Committee, the directorate and some teachers of Moose Kerr school and presented our project idea. During our field visit we connected with many more community members, parents and teachers. The team is happy that the work with the students was very well received and are now looking forward to the next visit and to receive more feedback. Aklavik HTC wildlife monitors and boat drivers accompanied the students and research team on all trips. The re-visit in fall 2023 had to be cancelled due to the extensive wildfires in the NWT. In March 2024 a short 4-day visit at Moose Kerr School was realized to re-connect with the students and teachers and plan our field work for September 2024. It has been shown that this personal connection is essential for the realization of the project on both sides. All collected data and subsequent results will be made available free of charge (see Ethics section on data storage). The name UndercoverEisAgenten is German for Undercover Ice Agents. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from: September 03 - September 30, 2024