Svalbard. Arctic snow is a reservoir of new natural chemical processes
We would like to thank the CNR and its Press Office for the following article.
Press release dated 21 April 2026
Research carried out by the CNR-ISP in collaboration with Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, the University of Perugia and other international research institutes has detected bromate, a bromine-based chemical compound, in the snowpack of Svalbard. The study, published in *Science Advances*, demonstrates that the snow that accumulates in the Arctic acts as a natural chemical reactor, exerting a significant impact on the atmospheric cycles of this region.
A study published in *Science Advances* and conducted by the Institute of Polar Sciences of the National Research Council in Venice (CNR-ISP), in collaboration with Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, the University of Perugia and other international partners, has identified, for the first time, the presence and formation mechanism of bromate in the Arctic snowpack. Bromate is a bromine compound; bromine is a chemical element of particular importance in this area, as it is involved in processes that characterise the Arctic atmosphere. “Bromine is central to the atmospheric chemistry of the polar regions,” explains Stefano Frassati, author of the study and a PhD student at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice. “Its reactions can trigger processes that lead to ozone destruction and also influence the cycle of other atmospheric compounds. This is why it is essential to understand how it is stored and transformed in the snowpack.”
The international team of researchers, thanks in part to their collaboration with the Italian research station Dirigibile Italia – managed by CNR-ISP – analysed snow and aerosol samples collected at Ny-Ålesund, in the Svalbard archipelago, during the winter and spring of 2022. The research has demonstrated the existence of a specific, previously unknown process that takes place in the snowpack and leads to the formation of bromate under natural conditions. “As solar radiation increases during the polar spring, light-induced chemical reactions are triggered. Bromide present in the snow – which in this environment is the main chemical form of bromine – can oxidise to form bromate, a much more stable compound that can accumulate both in the snowpack and in the surrounding environment,” explains Andrea Spolaor, a researcher at CNR-ISP and co-author of the study.
The research made use of analytical techniques that are more sensitive than those available in the past. Furthermore, by employing specific protocols for the identification of oxidised bromine species, it was possible to detect bromate even at low concentrations, overcoming the limitations of previous studies which had failed to detect its presence. Furthermore, through quantum mechanical calculations, the chemical mechanism leading to the formation of bromate in snow has been elucidated.
“By combining advanced experiments with sophisticated theoretical models, we have been able to clarify the dynamics of the elementary chemical processes at work in a highly complex medium such as snow,” emphasises David Cappelletti, a professor at the University of Perugia and co-author of the study. Although it has no direct impact on current climate change, this discovery is significant.
Rome, 21 April 2026
Institute of Polar Sciences of the National Research Council in Venice, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, University of Perugia
Giornalista detentore dal 2015 del Guinness World Records TV e Ambasciatore Borghi più Belli d’Italia.
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