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  "description": "Researchers will join eleven voyages aboard National Geographic Endurance and National Geographic Resolution, with fieldwork from Svalbard and Iceland to Greenland and Scotland. ",
  "path": "/national-geographic-lindblad-select-2026-arctic-research-projects/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-05T21:09:13.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.cruisenews.io",
  "textContent": "The National Geographic Society and Lindblad Expeditions have selected six National Geographic Explorer-led projects for the 2026 Arctic Visiting Scientist Program, placing researchers on 11 voyages aboard the polar expedition ships National Geographic Endurance and National Geographic Resolution. The projects cover microbial diversity, plankton, glacier imaging, rocky shore monitoring, polar productivity and airborne and seawater microplastics.\n\nThe 2026 season is the fourth consecutive Arctic season in which the Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic Fund has supported research through the program. The work uses National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions voyages as field platforms in Arctic and North Atlantic operating areas including Svalbard, Norway, Iceland, Greenland and Scotland.\n\n“The Visiting Scientist Program demonstrates the power of our collaboration with Lindblad Expeditions to support field research and data collection in the world’s most remote environments,” said Ian Miller, chief science and innovation officer at the National Geographic Society.\n\nMiller said the National Geographic Society and its Explorers are working to document ecosystems and develop evidence-based responses to current challenges. Lindblad said the six selected projects are intended to expand baseline understanding of the Arctic.\n\n## Six projects selected for Arctic voyages\n\nCatherine Ribeiro is leading Arctic Microbial Diversity as Living Sentinels in a Changing Ocean, a project that collected and filtered seawater around Svalbard and along Norway’s coast in April 2026. Gabrielle Corradino’s Microbial Gateways of the North Atlantic: Examining Arctic Plankton will collect plankton in Iceland and Greenland to study biodiversity patterns.\n\nAllison Fong’s Primary Productivity Potential of Polar Microbial Communities will assess changes in microbial productivity in response to warming ocean conditions in the Svalbard archipelago. Rui Seabra is leading Long-term Monitoring of Rocky Shore Temperatures and Biodiversity, which is establishing a monitoring system for rocky shore habitats across the Atlantic Ocean.\n\nThe remaining two projects focus on glacial and pollution data. Catherine Walker’s Ice at the Edge: Walls of Change will gather geophysical data and imagery of glaciers in southern Greenland, while Rachael Zoe Miller’s Mapping Microplastics and Microfibers in Water and Air will collect microplastics and microfibers from seawater and air along a Greenland-Iceland-Scotland transect.\n\n## LEX-NG Fund backs ship-based fieldwork\n\nThe Visiting Scientist Program allows researchers to conduct fieldwork aboard selected National Geographic-Lindblad Expeditions voyages and engage guests through talks or, in some cases, hands-on data collection. Program materials tell applicants to determine whether research permits are required by each country or jurisdiction where work is planned.\n\nThe LEX-NG Fund was established in 2008 and is jointly supported by Lindblad Expeditions and the National Geographic Society. The fund reported $3.03 million invested across 36 projects in 2025, with cumulative support exceeding $26.4 million since inception.\n\nWalker’s glacier project is scheduled for July 2026. Rachael Zoe Miller’s microplastics and microfiber sampling effort is scheduled to begin in September 2026 on the route from Greenland to Iceland and Scotland.",
  "title": "National Geographic, Lindblad Select 2026 Arctic Research Projects",
  "updatedAt": "2026-06-05T23:09:14.519Z"
}