Earlier this week at the European Geophysical Union meeting in Vienna, Claudia Hertl presented work arising from our Mainz/Minnesota collaboration on the side-effects of the Tirpitz’s deployment to Norway during the Second World War.
Where is Tirpitz? - Sir Winston Churchill
I’ve had a wonderful time this past year helping Claudia, Jan, and Oli sort through the Tirpitz puzzle and the cause of the mysterious missing rings in 1945. I had actually never heard of the Tirpitz before, and I’ve been fascinated by this unknown (by me) story of one of the most interesting naval stories from the war. Two of my great-uncles were pilots in the Royal Air Force (enlisting from Canada), one of them a bomber pilot flying the de Havilland Mosquito. The Tirpitz was eventually sent down by Lancaster bombers rather than Mosquitoes, but it’s also encouraging that this project has brought together scientists from counties on opposites sides of the war to look back at the environmental impacts of these few battles on a lonely northern fjord in Norway.
This work is still ongoing but has already attracted a lot of attention in the media (and across many countries). I’ll post links to stories as I spot them.
United Kingdom
BBC Science & Environment, Nazi legacy found in Norwegian trees
BBC Science & Environment, Tirpitz engagement recorded in trees
United States
Eos, Tree Rings Tell a Tale of Wartime Privations
Popular Mechanics, How the Nazi's Largest Battleship Is Still Affecting Norway Today
Smithsonian Magazine, Norwegian Trees Still Bear Evidence of World War II German Battleship
Canada
As It Happens, How Norwegian trees tell the story of a cloaked Nazi war ship
Estonia
W3, Natsi-Saksamaa võimsaima sõjalaeva "pärand" leidub siiani Põhja-Norra mändides
Belgium
vrtNWS, Noorse bomen bewaren herinnering aan nazi-slagschip Tirpitz
Germany
der Standard, Rauchwolke um Schlachtschiff Tirpitz wurde in Norwegen zum Umweltproblem
France
Agence France Presse, Whispering pines: Trees tell story of WWII battleship
Sciences Et Avenir, Des arbres racontent le combat à mort d'un cuirassé allemand
Norway
abc nyheter, Spor etter slagskipet Tirpitz finnes i nordnorske trær
Dagbladet, Derfor var det så vanskelig å senke «Tirpitz»
Document.no, Forskere: Kunstig tåkelegging av Tirpitz forurenset skogen
Norsk Rikskringkasting Nazistenes stolthet «Tirpitz» har satt spor i norske trær
The Local, How Norwegian trees have revealed the story of Germany's biggest WWII battleship
Bosnia and Herzegovina
klix, Hemijska magla korištena za prikrivanje nacističkog broda ostavila trag na norveškom drveću
Sweden
GP, Nazityskt slagskepp bakom ringlösa träd
Spain
El Pais, Los árboles no olvidan la guerra
