The article examines various approaches to assessing the effectiveness of innovative scientific research and analysis tools. The main principles and stages in the effectiveness analysis of research projects are identified, which served as a basis for the methodology designed to assess the effectiveness of Arctic-oriented research projects. The methodology is proposed for four main types of research activities, including basic research, exploratory research, applied research, and development work. It is indicated that it is possible to assess the effectiveness of scientific activities conducted by organizations using aggregate indices while taking into account the type of organization implementing Arctic-oriented scientific projects.

Marine spatial planning is widely used in coastal countries across the world. This approach is based on taking into account all current and planned marine economic activities and assessing their impact on all biotic and abiotic components of the ecosystem. In 2013–2015, a pilot project involving the implementation of marine spatial planning in the Russian part of the Barents Sea was completed in Russia for the first time under the auspices of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to comply with the order of the President of the Russian Federation. The project yielded a list of environmental restrictions and proposals for each type of economic activity in the Barents Sea. These proposals were used by the Government of the Russian Federation to develop a roadmap to implementing marine spatial planning in the Russian Federation in 2015–2018 and prepare a report for the President of the Russian Federation.

The study identifies and analyzes the dependence of environmental and economic costs associated with marine dredging on the total volume of dredged soil for the Russian marine areas in the Far North and the Arctic zone, as well as for the other, more southern seas in Russia. The analysis was conducted using a representative sample of over 300 dredging projects from the database of Eco-Express Service LLC, an environmental design company in St. Petersburg. The total environmental and economic costs were found to be directly dependent on the total volume of dredged soil, both for the marine areas in the Far North and the Arctic zone and the other seas of the Russian Federation. However, relative environmental and economic costs arising from dredging (per volume unit of dredged soil) are virtually independent of the total dredged soil volume within its entire examined range. Of note is that the relative environmental and economic costs associated with dredging in the Far North and the Arctic are 1.6 times higher than those for the other seas in Russia. The study results can be used for the information and analytical support of scientific research and management decisions regarding the development of Russian marine areas.

This article is aimed at characterizing the physical-geographical and socio-geographical conditions of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. The necessity and possibility of using unmanned vehicles to support activity in the Arctic are demonstrated. The cyber capability of the Arctic zone is determined in terms of observability, controllability, and security criteria. The characteristics of unmanned vehicles used in Arctic operations are given. General principles for the formation of singleand group airmobile intelligent platforms are formulated. Digital technologies and methods for using unmanned airborne platforms are described in the context of typical piloting episodes and tasks, situation analysis in a given area, ice reconnaissance, provision of communication networks in poorly equipped water areas, navigation systems support, etc. The limitations of using airmobile unmanned technologies in Arctic conditions are outlined.

The article provides an analytical review of long-term studies assessing the ecological state of Arctic marine ecosystems. The focus is on integral estimation methods. The issues associated with the application of biological methods for assessing the ecological state of the Russian continental shelf of Arctic seas are considered. The author briefly reviews existing methods for biotesting the marine environment and provides examples of the use of biotest systems. On the example of model benthic communities, an ecological assessment of marine benthic ecosystems is presented.

The thermohaline processes in the Arctic coastal zone of seas in  Russia are analyzed on the example of some parts of the Barents and Kara Seas: specifically, the Medynsko-Varandey site and the near-mouth coast of the Ob and Yenisey. For comparison with the thermohaline characteristics of international waters, the authors used observation data obtained by  Admiral Vladimirsky oceanographic research ship in the summer  — autumn of 2014 and Professor Multanovsky in the summer — autumn of 2019 (“Transarctica 2019”). The study aims to obtain typical and extreme distributions of hydrological characteristics in order to estimate heat and salt fluxes in the bottom layers. The characteristic substance fluxes can be used in the calculations of fluxes in bottom sediments, which have a significant effect on permafrost thawing. Such sedimentary rocks constitute a new source of minerals in the Arctic zone. In order to calculate heat and salt fluxes, it is necessary to obtain high spatial resolution data. The available data may be insufficient, thus requiring integrated oceanological observations in the coastal zone.

The article describes weather conditions characteristic of the quasi-homogeneous climatic region of the Gulf of Ob, lists the main oil and gas condensate, gas condensate, and gas fields, as well as specifying the main requirements for the organization of a full-scale monitoring of weather conditions in the selected region. Climate changes were analyzed using reports on the weather conditions of different regions of the Russian Federation in 2017–2021, prepared by the All-Russian Research Institute of Hydrometeorological Information–World Data Centre. The data analysis revealed primarily positive deviations of the mean monthly temperature from the norm. A positive temperature anomaly was observed in 83% of cases. The climate in the Gulf of Ob region has been getting drier and colder in winter these past five years, which complicates winter navigation. Over the past five years, drier weather has been observed in 50% of cases.

The study used data on the pollution of the coastline of the Russian Arctic National Park with marine litter to examine its composition and determine its origins. Marine litter is shown to accumulate on the islands of the Russian Arctic despite the absence of garbage patches in the Arctic Ocean. The analysis identified plastic as the main type of marine litter polluting the coasts. Monitoring also helped to identify the main source of pollution—fishing. The obtained results can be used to develop a plan designed to prevent industrial and consumer waste from reaching the coasts of islands.