IPY International Data Management meeting On behalf of the IPY- International Programme Office, Canada will be hosting the International IPY Data Management Meeting from September 29 to October 1, 2009. This represents a great opportunity for data managers / coordinators to take stock of what has been achieved over the last two years and discuss the challenges and opportunities regarding the stewardship of data collected during the International Polar Year. The meeting will be held in Ottawa at the Ottawa Marriot Hotel steps away from Parliament Hill and other attractions. A block of rooms with special conference rates have been set aside for participants and will be available until July 31st, 2009. For specific meeting and travel i...

The Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment working group of the Arctic Council has released the Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment 2009 Report. This extensive and well-illustrated document, supported by Canada, Finland and the United States and recently approved by the Arctic Council, represents a four-year effort to consider and review all aspects of Arctic shipping. It includes extensive documentation of shipping activities from a baseline year (2004) and future projections in key areas such as environmental protection, marine infrastructure, human dimensions, and governance. It contains a series of very useful maps and charts. I like this quote: "less ice doe...

In a News article on ipy.org last week we described activities in Washington DC and Baltimore, Maryland, as part of the annual Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting. In particular, we described the special opening-day event in Washington in recognition of the 50th Anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty and with focus on IPY; the picture above shows Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere and USA Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at that event. The assembled ministers, representing Antarctic Treaty nations and Arctic Council nations, adopted, by acclimation, a ...

The Maryland Science Center at Baltimore's Inner Harbor, Credit: Maryland Science Center On the 6th of April 2009, the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting and the Arctic Council met together in Washington DC. The fourty-seven signatory nations to the Antarctic Treaty include several northern countries that also hold membership on the Arctic Council, but in Washington the two polar political organizations met together for the first time. The USA hosted the meeting, at the US Department of State, in recognition of the initial signing of the Antarctic Treaty, also in Washington, in 1959, 50 years ago. The Treaty meetings extend for an additional two weeks, in Baltimore, and the Arctic Council will go on to its own meetings later this month, in Norway. This special...

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...

This enjoyable on-line training system Antarctica: Challenging Forecasts for a Challenging Environment features an educational introduction to Antarctica including some history, interesting facts, real-life experiences, climate, and the challenges inherent to this frozen continent. After the short (12 minute) introductions, those viewers who want more information can follow on-line instructional units designed to give prospective Antarctic forecasters or meteorology students an understanding of the challenges in forecasting in Antarctica and an overview of the tools used to monitor and forecast Antarctica’s weather. Using recent ima...

This recent article on Earthzine from three members of the IPY Data Management Committee presents the opportunities and the challenges of meeting IPY's data goals in both historical and global contexts. The article reminded me, again, of the powerful impact IPY can have on the future of scientific information, and that achieving that impact requires resources (of course) but more importantly commitment and cooperation from the IPY participants. If you wonder why you continue to hear, from the IPO, from your funding agencies, and from the IPY Data and Information Services, reminders about the importance of metadata and data registration and data archivin...

NOAA Probes Arctic Pollution For Global Warming Clues NOAA — April 7 — NOAA scientists are now flying through springtime Arctic pollution to find out why the region is warming - and summertime sea ice is melting - faster than predicted. Some 35 NOAA researchers are gathering with government and university colleagues in Fairbanks, Alaska, to conduct the study through April 23. Called ARCPAC (Aerosol, Radiation, and Cloud Processes affecting Arctic Climate Change), the project is a NOAA contribution to International Polar Year 2008. Ringed seals key to polar bears' fate: researchers Winnipeg Free Press — Apr...

Already, many researchers prepare publications of their IPY work. As described in the IPY Data Policy, we encourage all IPY researchers to acknowledge IPY and its sponsoring agencies (ICSU, WMO) in all of these publications and to provide bibliographic information for all IPY publications to the IPY Publications Database website. By these two simple steps, we enhance the impact and help ensure the legacy of IPY. A short IPY Scholarly Publications Policy...

A helicopter crash in Antarctica has claimed the lives of two people and injured three. Those of us involved in the International Polar Year express our deep sadness at the news. We hope for a speedy return to full health for those injured, and we remember with admiration and appreciation the skill and dedication of our partners. AWI press release (German) NIOZ press release (Dutch) ...