Climate of the Arctic and its role for Europe/Arctic System Reanalysis The overall objective of IPY-CARE (International Polar Year - Climate of the Arctic and its Role for Europe) is to create, co-ordinate and prepare a Pan-European science and implementation plan for Arctic climate change and ecosystems research programme as contribution to the International Polar Year.

International Team Collects New Information about Ice Sheet Growth and Collapse With a Long-range Aircraft in East Antarctica Our international team will conduct an airborne survey over the central East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS), which has been nearly inaccessible until now. We will use a long-range aircraft to fly from a US base deep into the interior of the EAIS over a two-year period. The team will use radar and other airborne instruments to image the EAIS’ internal features and the bedrock below the ice. The observations will allow our team to study ice sheet formation and decay, as well as subglacial lakes, subglacial geology, and changes in ice accumulation through time.

Dense water formation in Polar areas; Impact on global ocean circulation and climate This international team of oceanographers will embark on expeditions to the Polar Oceans with ice going vessels to measure ocean temperature, salinity and currents, ice formation and distribution. They will employ remote sensing as well as bottom anchored instrument moorings to feed global numerical models. The project will try to estimate the impact of dense water formation in the polar regions on the global ocean circulation and climate.

Northern Material Culture through International Polar Year Collections, Then and Now: In the Footsteps of Murdoch and Turner This project is a modern version of the ethnological collecting by the 1st International Polar Year (IPY) expeditions to Pt. Barrow, Alaska and Fort Chimo in Quebec. It will involve Northern community residents, including students. Current material culture will be documented with digital photograpy and gathering of information on how the items are made and used. Educators can incorporate this into broader educational activities, which will expose students to the Arctic, Northern peoples and Arctic research history.

The Sixth Continent Initiative aims to introduce scientists from countries who have no experience in Antarctica to the research which is carried out there, during the IPY 2007, as a reaffirmation of the provision of the Antarctic Treaty that dedicates the continent to peace and science for all mankind.

Comparative Studies of Marine Arctic and Antarctic Ecosystems and the Potential Consequences of Climate Change The polar ecosystems are of key importance for the earth's climate and biosphere. ICES will coordinate a symposium to present major results and conclusions of the IPY entitled “Comparative Studies of Marine Arctic and Antarctic Ecosystems and the Potential Consequences of Climate Change”. The congress will be held in 2010 in an ICES member state or affiliate country.

PPS Arctic: Present day processes, Past changes, and Spatiotemporal variability of biotic, abiotic and socio-environmental conditions and resource components along and across the Arctic delimitation zone. PPS Arctic investigates the causes and consequences of changes in the circumarctic treeline zone, using fieldwork and remote sensing to study and model temporal and spatial aspects of ecological, social and cultural factors. Changes in the zone affect Arctic ecosystem processes, resource availability and the entire Arctic climate through changes in tree and shrub cover and in albedo, with global consequences.

An International Antarctic University The International Antarctic Institute is a consortium being developed by leading global Antarctic educational and research-intensive institutes. Its purpose is to facilitate cooperation and collaboration between member universities in Antarctic undergraduate and postgraduate multi disciplinary education. By sharing teaching resources between international partner universities we can create educational opportunities on a scale unattainable by any one institute or through traditional bilateral alliances.

"Antarctic Sea Ice in IPY is the coordinated project for the sea ice zone surrounding Antarctica, covering over 20 million sqkm (the size of South America) at maximum extent. Our purpose is to determine, for the first time, the circumpolar year-round sea ice thicknesses in this zone. This effort requires extensive ship investigations, coordinated satellite monitoring and use of underwater technologies such as up looking sonar from moorings and use of unmanned autonomous underwater vehicles. The reflectivity or albedo of the earth's surface represents one of the main determinants of surface temperature and, Antarctic sea ice as one of the most large-scale changeable sources of reflected solar energy therefore represents a major contributor to climate and climate change."

Three terrestrial components of the cryosphere: snow cover, permafrost, and small glaciers will be studied as well as their interactions with society and potential feedbacks to the Global Earth System. Within each area of research the foci of studies will be on the models’ development and creation of conditions for seamless their implementation to improve understanding and projections of environmental change and to serve numerous practical applications.