Cartographic support issues in the Arctic Ocean studying and bathymetric investigation objectives in the Russian Arctic

Abstract

The current state and issues of the bathymetric investigations of the Arctic Ocean are examined in the study. The main sources of bathymetric data in the Central Arctic region and Arctic seas are characterized. The main possibilities to solve these issues in order to improve the efficiency of oncoming bathymetric investigation in the Russian Arctic sector for solving the urgent practical and scientific tasks of the Russian Federation in the Arctic region are discussed. The problem of hydrographic investigation and marine cartography of the new high latitude routes in the Northern Sea Route and bathymetric investigations of the South-Eastern part of Gakkel Ridge which are important for the Russian extended continental shelf submission is covered as one of the main issues. The importance of a new hydrographic investigation at the high latitude routes in the East Siberian Sea in order to provide the possibility of year-round navigation for the large-tonnage Arc7‑class icebreaking liquefied natural gas carriers is especially emphasized. The questions of geoformation and ice satellite support for efficient navigation along the Northern Sea Route are considered. It is concluded that the poor hydrographic knowledge of the new high latitude route in the East Siberian Sea and the lack of electronic navigation charts will prevent the possibility of establishing the year-round navigation for Arc7‑class icebreaking liquefied natural gas carriers during the coming several years. It is stated that hydrographic investigations carried out on the sections of the Northern Sea Route must adhere to the requirements of the International Hydrographic Organization. The urgency of developing the state integrated bathymetric database for the Arctic Ocean including the arctic seas data along with the necessity of providing all Russian bathymetric data acquired in the Arctic region to the assigned national center is discussed. The FKU 280 ZKP VMF is proposed as such national center. The importance of bathymetric maps of the Arctic Ocean is noted. The main role of creating the electronic bathymetric maps using modern technology and analytical geomorphological mapping on the basis of the system-oriented morphological approach in Earth science is emphasised.