Dr. Vigan Mensah

Specially Appointed Assistant Professor (Promotion to Specially Appointed Associate Professor in October 2025)
Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University, Japan
Email: vmensah@lowtem.hokudai.ac.jp
ResearchGate Profile
ORCID: 0000-0001-8062-278X

Professional Summary

I am a polar oceanographer with a multidisciplinary background in ocean observations, satellite remote sensing, and numerical modeling. My research focuses on sea ice-ocean interactions in the Arctic, North Pacific, and Southern Ocean. My greatest interest is toward the estimation of the freshwater budget and its temporal variability in the western Arctic from ocean observations, and I plan to use a similar approach in the Sea of Okhotsk. I have a diverse professional background that spans the French Navy, environmental consulting in Singapore, and academic research in Taiwan and Japan.

Research Interests

• Sea ice-ocean interactions and freshwater budgets in the Western Arctic
• Variability of circulation and water mass properties in the Sea of Okhotsk
• Coupled ocean-sea ice numerical modeling in the Southern Ocean
• Development of data analysis and mapping methods for polar oceanographic datasets

Recent Highlights

Professional Path

I began my career in the French Navy as a radar operator, and then became an oceanographic engineer for SHOM, the French Navy's Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service. I later transitioned into the corporate world in marine environmental consulting as an engineer in Singapore. I then moved into academia, with postdoctoral and faculty appointments in Taiwan and Japan. This diverse background provides a unique perspective to my research and teaching in polar oceanography.

Selected Publications

• Mensah et al. (2025). Decline in sea ice meltwater and Pacific Winter Water salinity in the Bering Sea. Progress in Oceanography. DOI
• Mensah et al. (2024). Water mass composition in the Sea of Okhotsk via advanced mapping. JGR – Oceans. DOI
• Honda, Ohshima, Mensah et al. (2024). Sea ice-melt estimates from spring hydrography. Journal of Oceanography. DOI
• Mensah & Ohshima (2023). Mapping methodology for polar oceans. J. Atmos. Ocean. Tech. DOI
• Mensah & Ohshima (2021). Oyashio Intermediate Water variability. Scientific Reports. DOI

Research Grants

• FY2025-2027: Freshwater content of the Western Arctic and its variability in a changing climate: causes and effects: Grant-in-aid for scientific research (Kakenhi-C) by Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)
• FY2022-2023: Sea ice melt and its impact on the upper ocean properties in a warming Pacific Arctic: Grant-in-aid for scientific research (early-career scientist) N22K14094, awarded by JSPS

Full Publication List

View on ResearchGate

Languages & Technical Skills

• French (native), English (fluent), Japanese (advanced - JLPT N2), Chinese (advanced spoken, intermediate reading)
• Data analysis (MATLAB, Fortran), student supervision, research project management, oceanographic instrumentation, MITgcm modeling, field campaign coordination, teaching

Background image: "Sea Ice (North Pole)" by Christopher Michel, licensed under CC BY 2.0.