Refuge-Arctic : The Last Ice Area Refuge of the changing Arctic Ocean

ARCLIGHT (Light-induced responses of autotrophic communities to extreme and variable Arctic LIGHTscape) is a multidisciplinary ANR-funded project that investigates how Arctic phytoplankton and sea-ice algae respond to extreme seasonal variations in light. The project focuses on two main scientific questions: (1) how photosynthesis reactivates after the polar night, and (2) how day length and photoperiodism drive community succession and function. ARCLIGHT leverages the Tara Polar Station (TPS) during an 8-month Central Arctic drift to conduct high-frequency field observations, which are integrated with laboratory experiments and environmental genomics. The project combines the complementary expertise of IRL Takuvik (field, optics, algal ecology), IBPC (photobiology and functional genomics), and MG (environmental genomics and modelling), aiming to bridge the molecular mechanisms and ecosystem-scale processes.