EALÁT: The IPY Arctic Reindeer Herders’ Vulnerability Network Study (EALÁT)-Network study is an interdisciplinary, intercultural study that will assess the vulnerability of reindeer herding, to change in key aspects of the natural and human environments, actively involving reindeer herders, linguists, lawyers, anthropologists, biologists, geographers, economists, philosophers as well as indigenous institutions and organisations, relevant industrial enterprises and management authorities.

The overall objective of IPY Arctic GOOS to develop and implement operational monitoring and forecasting systems in the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas. The systems will be based on state-of-the-art remote sensing, in situ observations, numerical modelling, data assimilation and dissemination techniques. Several components of Arctic GOOS are presently in operation, producing daily information that can be downloaded from web sites.

Thawing permafrost could release large amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere causing even more global warming !

This initiative was launched because there is considerable concern and increased awareness both within the international scientific community and the general public about the effects that global warming could have on frozen grounds in Arctic regions (Main Photo). A significant proportion of this permafrost would start to thaw out over the coming decades, with a potential release of large amounts of greenhouse gases (both carbon dioxide and the much more potent methane) to the atmosphere from previously frozen soil organic matter that will start to decompose. This is a so-called positive feedback within the Earth System, as climate warming results in permafrost thawing that causes a further increase of greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere resulting in even more warming. We are not dealing only with a gradual process related to progressive thawing of the ground with depth over time. Also more dramatic events like ground subsidence due to melting of buried ice bodies (Photo 2) and lateral erosion along the edges of thaw lakes (Photo 3) would accelerate the release of greenhouse gases.

Polar View brings together multiple satellite observations and a network of expert providers to deliver a range of polar monitoring services. Via an international consortium, funded by the European Space Agency, Polar View is delivering accurate, near real time information about sea ice conditions in the Arctic and Antarctic. Additionally it provides snow and glacier information, plus data about river and lake ice break up for hydrology and flood risk mitigation.

As part of IPY, Polar View has extended the sea ice services to being together all operational sea ice information into the IPY Ice Logistics Portal. This provides a convenient point of access to operational sea ice information produced by the world's ice services and Polar View. Access to products is provided via a series of pre-defined regions for both the Arctic and the Antarctic.

STUDENTS ON ICE is an award-winning organization offering unique learning expeditions to the Antarctic and the Arctic. Our mandate is to provide students from around the world with inspiring educational opportunities at the ends of our earth, and in doing so, help them foster a new understanding and respect for our planet.

The Students on Ice - International Polar Year Youth Expeditions series has been endorsed by the IPY Joint Committee as a prominent and valued component of the IPY program. These special IPY-themed voyages to the Arctic and Antarctic offer once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to over 500 youth to explore the Polar regions!

These unique educational expeditions are designed for international high school and university youth. Participants will travel together with teams of polar scientists, experts and educators. The ice-strengthened ship-based expeditions will be unparalleled platforms for Polar and Environmental Education and outreach for the International Polar Year.

Doing science in the polar regions depends on humans performing under the most extreme environmental conditions. By collecting data for a new epidemiological database of health events in Antarctica, this 18-nation project will improve our understanding of how individuals and groups interact in confined environments, and how human physiology adapts to such extreme conditions. The results should help improve the health of polar scientists, help deliver better healthcare in other remote areas of the world, and help space scientists understand the likely effects of isolation on astronauts during long-duration missions.

Recent changes in surface elevation and discharge speed in outlet glacier systems along the margins of the Greenland Ice Sheet have provided examples of dramatic localized shifts in the balance of ice discharge, surface melt, and accumulation. These rapid changes are in sharp contrast to relatively slow variations in surface elevation in the interior, which have been tied to accumulation and firn compaction variations on a decadal timescale. The challenge of documenting and attempting to understand the processes involved has motivated a large collection of proposed research projects aimed at this problem. These range from expansions of ongoing efforts to new projects, and from individual investigators to consortia from a number of nations. They utilize a range of observational and modeling techniques and exploit evolving capabilities in atmospheric modeling, remote sensing for measurement of ice motion and surface conditions, and surface-based and aircraft-based measurement techniques.