UAE expands scientific polar footprint through research, historic expeditions

The United Arab Emirates is expanding its scientific footprint in the Arctic and Antarctic through strategic treaty accessions, research partnerships, exploration programmes and record-setting individual expeditions aimed at advancing global climate change research.

The UAE strengthened its role in polar science by acceding to the Antarctic Treaty System under Federal Decree No. 165 of 2024. This membership allows the UAE to participate in consultative meetings and propose national research initiatives alongside international climate agencies.

Simultaneously, the UAE has secured observer status on the Arctic Council under Federal Decree No. 164 of 2024, facilitating broader involvement in northern environmental dialogues and future research programmes.

In February, Emirati meteorology and seismology specialists in a joint mission with the Bulgarian Antarctic Institute installed two advanced monitoring stations in Antarctica to collect vital data on atmospheric and seismic activities in Antarctica.

This collaboration continued in November when a UAE scientific team took part in Bulgaria’s 34th Antarctic expedition for the second consecutive year.

The UAE’s presence in the region has also been marked by several individual milestones in extreme exploration.

The team is working through UAE laboratories at the Bulgarian base in Antarctica, where research projects launched under the UAE Polar Programme in 2024 are being developed and upgraded. The programme aims to build national capabilities in polar science and strengthen the UAE’s contribution to global climate research.

In 2025, the UAE signed memoranda of understanding with Argentina and New Zealand to enhance cooperation in Antarctic research, exchange academic expertise and support national capacity-building in polar sciences.

This agreement focuses on institutional cooperation and best practices in polar research, supporting the UAE’s long-term goal of establishing its own permanent research laboratories at both poles.

The UAE’s presence in the region has also been marked by several individual milestones in extreme exploration. This month, 18-year-old Emirati mountaineer Fatima Abdulrahman Al Awadhi became the youngest Arab woman to summit Mount Vinson, Antarctica’s highest peak.

This follows a record-breaking mission by Emirati explorer Ibrahim Sharaf Al Hashemi, who completed the first circular flight around Antarctica, using two helicopters. The 19,050-kilometre expedition, which took place from 4th December 2024 to 17th January 2025, startedand ended at Union Glacier Camp

These achievements build on the legacy of Abdullah Al Ahbabi becoming the first Emirati to complete the "polar hat-trick” - skiing unsupported to the North Pole, South Pole and across Greenland. Alahbabi completed the North Pole feat in 2018, the South Pole mission in 2019, and crossed Greenland in March 2025.

WAM