Call for submissions POLES APART // PULLING TOGETHER Call for submission (PDF) POLES APART // PULLING TOGETHER is an educational photo exhibition that will honour and celebrate the contributions of polar science research to the betterment of society globally. The exhibition highlights achievements in Arctic and Antarctic research of the International Polar Year (IPY). It will feature in international venues beginning in February 2009. Concept The exhibition connects the science research in two of the harshest environments on Earth, the Arctic and Antarctic, to the social and cultural response to climate change in t...

One can hardly imagine a more interesting time for Arctic sea ice, or a more challenging time if one wishes to predict the minimal extent of the sea ice at the end of this year's melting season (the Arctic melting season generally ends around 20 September). Sea ice in 2007 reached a minimum of 4.2 million square kilometres on 21 September, an extent 40% below the average for the past 28 years and so low that it surprised all observers and called into question many of the assumptions we might use to estimate 2008 conditions. We now understand that an unusual weather pattern of warm winds and clear skies played a large role in 2007 melting, and we know that we started 2008 with an unusually large amount of new (first year) ice. An international group of researchers has, f...

The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) - Sixth Continent Initiative fellowship 2008 award has just been granted to the Hungarian Ramón Hegedüs. The marine environment around Antarctica offers unique possibilities for studying the adaptations of visually-based animal navigation systems and foraging techniques. Currently working on a PhD in statistical and biological physics, this 26-year-old intends to investigate 'The role of polarized skylight in animal navigation and foraging in the Antarctic'.In his abstract research plan, Ramón explains that migration between h...

Researchers of the Alfred Wegener Institute on Spitsbergen investigate the reaction of seaweeds to increased ultraviolet radiation Bremerhaven, August 21st 2008. It is red, it burns and itches: a sunburn on our skin. However, too much sun is not only bad for humans. Many plants react sensitively to an increased dose of ultraviolet radiation, too. Yet they are dependent on sunlight. With the help of pigments absorbing solar energy and light, plants produce their vitally important building blocks by means of photosynthesis. However, this has its limits: too much sun means an over-abundance of energy and thus the destruction of the sensitive pigments. The result are black spots, pale leaves and rotten parts. Since algae cannot apply sun lotion like we do, they de...

The next International Polar Day is in ONE MONTH: on September 24th we will be focussing on People and the Polar Regions. There are many ways you can get involved.. please consider some of the following, share with your networks, and let us know if you have any feedback or further ideas. Links to the following planned activities can be found from the sidebar at http://www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/detail/people 1. Launch a Virtual Balloon: show the involvement of your class or school in this event and watch balloons flying around the world. Launching instructions are available in several languages or email your loc...

Bremerhaven, August 19th 2008. German research vessel Polarstern, operated by the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in the Helmholtz Association, transits the Northwest Passage for the first time. Polarstern left the port of Reykjavik on August 12th, sailed around Greenland on a southern course and is located right now at the beginning of the Northwest Passage. Its destination is the East Siberian Sea where geoscientific measurements at the junction between the Mendeleev Ridge and the East Siberian Shelf are at the focus of the participants of this expedition. The measurements striven for in the framework of the International Polar Year shall help to understand how the undersea ridges and basins were built. This expedition takes the researchers in 68 days around the No...

Press release Bremerhaven August 7th 2008. The German Research Vessel Polarstern had to prove its ice breaking capabilities in Arctic waters to gain data on two series of long-term research measurements. After working in regions up to latitude 82° N, Polarstern of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in the Helmholtz Association will enter port in Reykjavik (Iceland) on August 10th. “This year, we had to cope with exceptional heavy ice coverage”, says chief scientist Prof. Gerhard Kattner. The sea ice covered the Arctic almost down to latitude 72° in southern direction. Perpetual winds from the Northwest have moved the ice into the central area of the Fram Strait since the beginning of summer. The main focus of the expedition lied ...

Investigating sea ice decline A revised outlook for the Arctic 2008 summer sea ice minimum shows ice extent will be below the 2005 level but not likely to beat the 2007 record. DAMOCLES will dispatch eleven research missions into the Arctic this autumn to better understand the future of the sea ice. Chances that the 2008 ice extent will fall below last year's record minimum is about 8 percent, researchers forecast after having run a number of different models predicting the fate of the Arctic sea ice this summer. But there is still reason for concern; the scientists are almost certain the ice extent will fall below the minimum of 2005, which was the second lowest year on record. With a probability of 80% the minimum ice extent in 200...

Contents: 1. IPO in August 2. September 24th: People Day 3. Oslo Science Conference, June 2010: Call For Session Ideas 4. AGU 5. Arctic Field Season Report no. 16, August 2008 From: IPY International Programme Office To: IPY Project Coordinators cc: IPY Community Google Groups 1. IPO in August Please note that the IPO will not be working at full potential during the month of August as Nicola, Dave, and Rhian are away from the office at different times. Please be patient if the response time is slow, and call our mobile phone numbers if an immediate response is required. 2. September 24th: People Day The next Polar D...

On occasion of the IV International Polar Year, Italian researchers of the Project “Map of Arctic People set up a touring historical-photographical exhibition focused on polar regions, called The Lords of Tundra, in order to spread the knowledge over arctic populations and lands. Protagonists of the lens are the Ural Mountains chain, the Arctic ocean being objects of significant transformations produced by the recent climate changes - and, above all, Nenets (or Nency) population, inhabiting the ice of Jamal Peninsula, in Siberia. Nency people are nomadic breeders founding their existence on reindeer breeding, thus constituting one of the last...