Group items tagged

"Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI). The Institute is a well-known and long-established centre for research into both polar regions. It is part of the University of Cambridge and is a sub-department of the Department of Geography"

Polar Science

This is a great site for background information. It's more of a researcher and information site than an educational outreach site (although it has that, too). It's very accessible and a good resource to either review a topic or start learning about something. Targeted to older audiences, or some portions are suitable for upper middle school. NSIDC supports research into our world's frozen realms: the snow, ice, glacier, frozen ground, and climate interactions that make up Earth's cryosphere. Scientific data, whether taken in the field or relayed from satellites orbiting Earth, form the foundation for the scientific research that informs the world about our planet and our climate systems.

"A new animation developed by researchers at the University of Hawaii's International Pacific Research Center (IPRC) illustrates the likely path of the spreading field of debris caused by retreating waves from last year's gigantic tsunami in Japan."

The R/V Knorr sets sail from the capital city of the Azores, Porta Delgada, on June 10, 2010 with researcher Lloyd Keigwin, his science team, the crew of the R/V Knorr and three teachers from Massachusetts. This research cruise will take them all the way across the North Atlantic back to R/V/ Knorr's homeport at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI) over the course of three weeks. One thing about WHOI - their work is of such good quality, that the blog will be useful far beyond the life the expedition!

Polar research from the participants' view. Many journal and blogs from teacher researchers and scientists. Even if you are not able to go physically on a trek, travel virtually through the archives, or participate in a webcast from the poles. Dig around this site - there is more than can fit in a small blurb!

Arctic Research Consortium of the U.S. The education link on this page throws you to PolarTREC, but if you are looking for more in-depth work, there are plenty of opportunities here. Especially useful are the myriad links under the 'Hot Links' menu selection. Much is targeted to adult/advanced student audiences.

From the above site, select "outreach" and read the blog of this group of multi disciplinary undergrads, grad students, K-12 teachers, and university faculty's Dec 07/Jan 08 trip to Antarctica. The blog could make a good mini-text or primer about Antarctica research. Since the conclusion of the expedition, the site has expanded to include photos, bios, and much more (through the Navigation links)

The US Army's Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory's site. Under the Educational Outreach menu item, you will find student opportunities (high school and above). The Kid's Corner is not directly polar related, but there are some good activities (especially under the Navigation Lessons) to tie in with a polar topic unit.

snow and ice

"The State of the Arctic Conference: "At the Forefront of Global Change"... The main goal of the conference is to review our understanding of the arctic system in a time of rapid environmental change. Sessions will be streaming and open to all. It will provide an open international forum for discussion of future research directions aimed toward a better understanding of the arctic system and its trajectory. Topics will range from basic understanding of the Arctic and system-wide change to developing response strategies to adapt and mitigate change."

Polar Science News

"Reading and thinking about International Polar Years: five recent books by Dave Carlson Abstract: Within the polar science community the Polar (and Geophysical) Years represent signal events. We often read, largely within geoscience literature, that those events represented positive and dramatic steps forward in international science. From five recent books - two historical compilations and three personal narratives - augmented by interviews with a few key participants, a more cautious picture emerges, of remarkable successes but also of occasional or even persistent missteps and deficiencies. An improved understanding of the IPY concept and experience can provide useful guidance for future polar and global science."

from Dave Carlson via Polar Educators International: "I wrote this summary of recent polar research (http://www.springerlink.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi%3A10.1007%2Fs12665-012-2185-y) with Polar Educators in mind: urgent topics, clear language (I hope) and, negotiated with Springer, open access. And they let me include some pictures! Check the summary paragraph first if you have limited time."

"OTTAWA, April 27, 2012 /CNW/ - QUOTE FROM Peter Harrison, Chair of the IPY 2012 Montreal Conference: "I am pleased to be a part of today's announcement of the establishment of a formal international professional network of polar educators teaching in, about and for the polar regions. I regard this as a very positive action emerging from the conference, another contribution to the legacy of IPY and the future of polar research."

A Nice video from FRAM - High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, on a project to measure albedo in Greenland., was spotted by my colleagues at IPF. Brings science in a very informative, clear, well shot and edited way, with good presenters:

"The following news article, Ocean Acid Threatens Food Chain, reveals some current ocean acidification research as it relates to little-known, but highly significant creatures, the Pteropods. They are tiny, exquisite, and are critical at the base of the food web. As we study the impact of ocean acidification on their delicate shells, we learn more about the potential broader implications of changing ocean chemistry."

"The Canadian permafrost community continues to be active in research initiatives to improve characterization of permafrost conditions and to provide information to better understand the impact of climate change and human activity on the northern landscape. A number of projects have been aimed at providing information that can facilitate the development of climate change adaptation strategies to minimize risk to infrastructure and to minimize environmental impacts of northern development."

CarbonTracker, a project of the U.S. government's National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration's Earth System Research Laboratory, has produced a telling time-lapse video chart of CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) concentrations starting in January of 1979 and ending in January of 2011. Measurements were taken in dozens of locations around the world (the red ball measures CO2 in Hawaii and the blue dot measures CO2 at the South Pole)

"Science: Methane Gas Release from Arctic Permafrost is Far Larger Than Expected Ancient permafrost submerged in the Arctic Ocean is releasing methane gas into the atmosphere at rates comparable to previous estimates for all the world's oceans combined, researchers say. This underwater permafrost represents a large but previously overlooked source of methane, and experts say that similar but more widespread emissions of the gas could have dramatic effects on global warming in the future."

Polar Science News

The Antarctic Connection™ is an internet based e-tailer and information source for All Things Antarctic!™. Our goal is to become the largest and best source for premium Antarctic related products as well as provide a vast center for news, weather and information from and about the frozen continent." A commercial site with some good info to get students engaged.

Polar Science

"The Polar Science Center (PSC) is a unit of the Applied Physics Laboratory at the University of Washington. Polar Science Center researchers observe and model the physical processes that control the nature and distribution of sea ice and polar ice sheets, the structure and movement of high-latitude oceans, and the interactions between air, sea, ice and biota. The Center has made major contributions to the understanding of how the arctic system has undergone important changes during the past four decades."

Polar Science

This is still the prototype portal - just launched today through the announcement that there will be the creation of a US Climate Change Office (http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-02-08/u-s-to-create-climate-change-office-commerce-s-locke-says.html) With the rapid rise in the development of Web technologies and climate services across NOAA, there has been an increasing need for greater collaboration regarding NOAA's online climate services. The drivers include the need to enhance NOAA's Web presence in response to customer requirements, emerging needs for improved decision-making capabilities across all sectors of society facing impacts from climate variability and change, and the importance of leveraging climate data and services to support research and public education. To address these needs, NOAA embarked upon an ambitious program to develop a NOAA Climate Services Portal (NCS Portal). Our goal is for the Portal to become the "go-to" website for NOAA's climate data, products, and services for all users."

polar science