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SCAR Newsletter: Issue 20, September 2009

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Dr. Michael Sparrow Confirmed as Next SCAR Executive Director

Following an extensive search, the SCAR Executive Committee (EXCOM) is pleased to announce that Dr Michael Sparrow, the current SCAR Executive Officer, will take up the position of Executive Director when the present incumbent, Dr Colin Summerhayes, retires on March 31 after six years in post. SCAR President Chuck Kennicutt reported that "we had an excellent pool of applicants and these choices are always difficult but the Search Committee (EXCOM) was unanimous in its selection. As of February 1, 2010 Mike will become the Executive Director Designee and work side-by-side with Colin during the changeover. At the end of Colin's contract, Mike will fully assume the position and responsibility of Executive Director." Having decided upon Mike's advancement, Chuck went on to say "we will also immediately begin discussions about his replacement. I expect that the Secretariat will be fully staffed by the time Mike assumes the Executive Director role on April 1, 2010. I am sure you join me in congratulating Mike on his promotion and as I indicated to him, I am looking forward to working with him during the remainder of my Presidency!"

You can read Mike's biography. During his two years with SCAR, his portfolio has included, among other things, managing finance and budgets, planning SCAR business meetings in St Petersburg (2008), working with the Expert Group on Oceanography to develop the design for a Southern Ocean Observing System (SOOS), assisting with the development of the Standing Committee on Antarctic Geographic Information (SCAGI), managing the newly developed Martha Muse Award programme, and managing SCAR's Capacity Building, Education and Training activities, which embrace the Association for Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS) and the SCAR research Fellowships.

The 2010 SCAR Conference

Plan to attend the fourth SCAR Open Science Conference (OSC) on "Antarctica - Witness to the Past and Guide to the Future" (3-6 August 2010 in Buenos Aires, Argentina)? A First Circular with programme details will be issued shortly. Watch this space. The OSC is part of the XXXI SCAR meeting, which has three sessions: SCAR Business meetings from 30 July - 2 August 2010; the OSC, from 3-6 August inclusive; and the Delegates meeting from 9-11 August inclusive.

IPY News

Nominations open for the Martha T. Muse Prize for Science and Policy in Antarctica

Nominations are now open for the Martha T. Muse Prize for Science and Policy in Antarctica. The Prize is a US$100,000 unrestricted award presented to an individual in the fields of Antarctic science or policy that has demonstrated potential for sustained and significant contributions that will enhance the understanding and/or preservation of Antarctica. The Prize is inspired by Martha T. Muse's passion for Antarctica and is intended to be a legacy of the International Polar Year 2007-2008.

The prize-winner can be from any country and work in any field of Antarctic science or policy. The goal is to provide recognition of the important work being done by the individual and to call attention to the significance of understanding Antarctica in a time of change. Further details, including the process of nomination and selection of the Prize recipients, are available on the Martha Muse Prize website. The Prize is awarded by the Tinker Foundation and administered by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR).

Science News

SCAR Publishes Report on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)

In response to a request to the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat by the Secretariat of the Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), based in Stockholm, for a report on the status of research on POPs in the Antarctic, SCAR's Action Group on Environmental Contamination in Antarctica (ECA) has produced a report on this topic for transmission to the POPs Secretariat. The report is now published on the SCAR web site and is available to view and download from the Occasional Publications section. SCAR is most grateful to the team who produced this elaborate and comprehensive report under the leadership of Roger Fuoco.

View the POPs Report.

Asymmetric auroral intensities in the Earth's Northern and Southern hemispheres

Based on a Letter to Nature, 460, 491-493 (23 July 2009) by K. M. Laundal & N. Østgaar, and related to the SCAR ICESTAR programme:

It is commonly assumed that the aurora borealis (Northern Hemisphere) and aurora australis (Southern Hemisphere) are mirror images of each other because the charged particles causing the aurora follow the magnetic field lines connecting the two hemispheres. The particles are believed to be evenly distributed between the two hemispheres, from the source region in the equatorial plane of the magnetosphere. Although it has been shown that similar auroral features in the opposite hemispheres can be displaced tens of degree in longitude, and that seasonal effects can cause differences in global intensity, the overall auroral patterns were still similar. Here we report observations that clearly contradict the common assumption about symmetric aurora: intense spots are seen at dawn in the Northern summer Hemisphere, and at dusk in the Southern winter Hemisphere. The asymmetry is interpreted in terms of inter-hemispheric currents related to seasons, which have been predicted but hitherto had not been seen.

The authors consider several mechanisms for the generation of such auroras as previously proposed in the literature; different intensity of the Earth's magnetic field in the ionosphere in the conjugate auroral regions, different ionospheric electrical conductivity due to seasonal effects, like the sunlight illumination in the two hemispheres, the orientation of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF), that favours one hemisphere with respect to the other in the configuration available during the observations. None of these explains the observed asymmetry. The authors suggest that the most likely explanation may be found in the generation of inter hemispheric field aligned currents, electrical currents carried by electrons that flow along the Earth's magnetic field and are responsible for the observed auroral features, which have never been directly observed in both hemispheres before.

Bathymetry data gaps in Southern Ocean need filling

SCAR's Expert Group on the International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO) is compiling bathymetric data, acquired during the past 40 years, to produce more detailed maps of sea floor topography as an aid to oceanographers (topography steers currents), biologists (topography is a key element of habitat) and geologists (topography is a first clue to geological process). To generate the first International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean, the IBCSO data manager (Norbert Ott, at the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven) collects and compiles bathymetric data, grids, and maps provided by hydrographic offices, scientific institutions and data centres. The IBCSO database now comprises about 1200 cruises with single-beam data (including 300 from fisheries without track control), about 140 cruises with multibeam data, and 10 regional bathymetric grid compilations from various sectors of the Southern Ocean. The ship track inventory displays the irregular distribution of tracks along which bathymetric data was collected in the Southern Ocean. Expedition motorways extend to Antarctica from Cape Town, Punta Arenas and Christchurch. Elsewhere, especially in the South Pacific sector and the Central Weddell Sea, we see large areas without tracks, due to sea ice coverage or remoteness. SCAR encourages national operators and principal investigators to plan expedition tracks to fill the gaps on the chart, following the Star Trek motto - "To Boldly Go Where No Man Has Gone Before". We've done our bit - now it's your turn to help make a map of the planetary surface a reality.

Progress with the Southern Ocean Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) Survey

All CPR samples collected during the Census of Antarctic Marine Life (CAML) survey in 2007/08 have been processed and the data fed into the database held at the Australian Antarctic Division Data Centre and SCAR-MarBIN. The data now comprises 27,591 sample records for more than 200 zooplankton taxa, with a 5 nautical mile resolution covering approximately 70% of the Southern Ocean. The CPR data are available upon request from the survey website. The data set includes sea-surface temperature, salinity and fluorometry. The samples will provide a synoptic assessment of the current spatial patterns of plankton diversity around Antarctic for one season that can be used as a reference to monitor future change. The data include the first CPR records in the Bellingshausen Sea, conducted from the Akademik Federov, which show both low species diversity and abundances in this area. Analysis of the overall dataset shows no longitudinal zonation within the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. A zooplankton atlas based on the CPR data will be published in early 2010. The atlas will comprise distribution maps of the 50 most abundant species and focus on the region south and west of Australia.

Read a more detailed report on the survey.

SCAR using DNA barcoding as diagnostic for Southern Ocean species

SCAR's Census of Antarctic Marine Life (CAML) programme aims among other things to collate DNA barcode data for Antarctic marine species. DNA barcoding is a technique that uses a short gene sequence from a standardized region of the genome as a diagnostic 'biomarker' for species. It can be used to identify known species, to discover new or cryptic species, to record genetic diversity and to study gene flow. Given the rate of climate-driven habitat changes that might lead to extinctions in the region, there is an urgent need for more in-depth genetic barcoding and species identification studies from a range of taxa and areas in the Antarctic. CAML plans to collect DNA sequences throughout the circum-Antarctic area, using material from voyages that occurred during 2008 and 2009 within the framework of the International Polar Year. CAML has established a supply agreement with the Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding (CCDB) in Guelph, which has agreed to sequence material collected over the coming year. With the help of Antarctic scientists and the CCDB, CAML has so far amassed more than 10,000 DNA sequences from more than 1500 species and from a range of phyla and Antarctic locations. Anyone with additional Antarctic material that they would like to be sequenced at Guelph should contact Rachel Grant (rachelannegrant@gmail.com) as soon as possible. Watch out for publication of an in press article in Polar Biology: Grant & Linse (2009) Barcoding Antarctic Biodiversity; current status and the CAML initiative, a case study of marine invertebrates. Among other things the paper identifies gaps in our knowledge with the hope of encouraging barcoding efforts in those areas.

Polar Bears Will Decline Along with Arctic Ice

Much to the chagrin of sceptics, it would appear from careful analyses of what polar bear populations are actually doing, rather than what the media thinks they are doing, that there is a clear relationship between declining Arctic sea ice and declining polar bear populations. The hard data, the models and the projections are carefully analysed in the light of what sceptics have to say, in a comprehensive paper led by the US Geological Survey. The implication is clear: as the Arctic continues to warm, and as sea ice continues to decline over the decades, polar bears will lose habitat and will not be able to make up for it by foraging inland. These beasts are under threat.

Read the full paper on the future of polar bears.

Sunspots, Oceanic Oscillations and Global Warming

The fact that the world cooled slightly in 2008 appears related to three phenomena: (i) the Pacific Decadal Oscillation entered a cool phase, and its cooling of the North Pacific has had an effect on the temperatures of east Asia and western North America and hence on global temperature; (ii) the Pacific has recently experienced an extended La Niña (cool) phase, and La Niña events, like El Niño (warm) events have an impact on global temperature; and (iii) we are at a low in the 11-year sunspot cycle; fewer sunspots means a very slightly cooler sun. These three things together conspired to keep 2008 cooler than average. The prognosis for the future is that we are now entering an El Nino event, and the sunspot cycle should soon turn around to reach a maximum somewhere around 2013 (see NASA's Solar Cycle Prediction). Next year is likely to be a warm one.

Data and Information

SCAR Launches New Data and Information Strategy

A SCAR Data and Information Management Strategy has recently been prepared by SCAR's Standing Committee on Antarctic Data Management (SCADM) and Standing Committee on Antarctic Geographic Information (SCAGI), in consultation with SCAR's Science Groups. The Strategy document is now published as SCAR Report 34, but is also downloadable from the Data and Information Management section of the Science and Data page. The Strategy was called for in the SCAR Strategic Plan 2004-2010, and a first draft was presented to the SCAR Delegates at their meeting in July 2008. The Delegates called for improvements to be made for consideration by SCAR's Executive Committee (EXCOM) in 2009, and the revised strategy was endorsed at the EXCOM meeting in August this year.

The strategy adds value to SCAR's and Members' data and information management efforts through promoting operation of a coherent and integrated data and information management system capable of supporting interdisciplinary Antarctic science. The strategy relies on leveraging existing assets, developing partnerships with global data and information activities, and supporting SCAR's science communities through adoption of community-based standards. It brings SCAR up to speed in the context of the global development of data and information management, and is vital to the progress of SCAR's science. Science is the key beneficiary, but the strategy should also be useful to national operators and the Antarctic Treaty Parties.

SCAR is now developing a Data and Information Management Implementation Plan, and a Data Policy for the approval of the SCAR Delegates at their meeting in Buenos Aires in August 2010.

Online version of the International Antarctic Weather Forecasting Handbook

The latest version of the International Antarctic Weather Forecasting Handbook is now available on the Internet. This is basically the 2004 hardcopy version plus the 2009 supplement and update. It's very much easier to use now since you can search the entire volume for a word or phrase. Visit the Handbook website. We are looking for updates on the station information from any of the SCAR nations.

Education and Training

APECS launches a Polar Literature Discussion Website

The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS) have launched a discussion forum where people can discuss recent and classic literature articles, books, films, etc. that pertain to the polar regions and the cryosphere. For further details, please go to the Polar Literature Discussion Webpage.

Outreach

SCAR History Group to hold Workshop at Antarctic Treaty Summit

In connection with the Antarctic Treaty Summit celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty, the SCAR History Action Group and the History Committee of the American Geophysical Union are holding a joint workshop on the theme "History of International Spaces" in Washington, D.C., on 3 December 2009.

People have divided the Earth geographically for millennia. Some of the divisions have been political, as when nations set their boundaries and then extend those boundaries to create empires. Scientists have also divided the earth into spaces depending on a number of attributes or purposes including magnetic fields, temperature and humidity distributions, geomorphology, flight paths, and ocean currents. However, fifty years ago, one geographic space—Antarctica—was designated as an international space. Since then we have also seen the creation of the International Space Treaty. The future may bring other international spaces, to be shared and examined by all peoples without national claims. It is in this spirit, that the organisers are encouraging the presentation of papers addressing scientific discovery, particularly geophysical, that surpasses national boundaries and takes place in international spaces.

Papers are invited for the workshop, which is open for any presentation on the history of polar research (both Arctic and Antarctic) or the history of geophysics. Abstracts of not more than 150 words may be submitted via e-mail attachment to Cornelia Lüdecke (SCAR History Group) <C.Luedecke@lrz.uni-muenchen.de> and Kristine Harper (AGU History Group) <kcharper@fsu.edu>, no later than 31 October 2009.

Partnerships

New Website for the International Permafrost Association

A new website has been launched for the International Permafrost Association. The website is a joint venture with the Arctic Portal and features a wide range of new features through user membership, including access to permafrost data, membership on the new Permalist mailing list, access to picture galleries, IPA documents, and other resources. It is regularly updated with news from the International Permafrost Association and members' countries and will be progressively enhanced to offer a wide range of web 2.0 features to its users. Permalist is a new activity of the IPA and is an email-based, unmoderated mailing list focused on permafrost activities, resources, event announcements, etc. It is accessible to all with an interest in permafrost and periglacial activities. It is coupled to user membership on the website. Only website users can post to the mailing list. Permalist is generously hosted by the International Arctic Research Center (IARC) in Fairbanks, Alaska. The International Permafrost Association (IPA), founded in 1983, fosters the dissemination of knowledge concerning permafrost and promotes cooperation among persons and national or international organizations engaged in scientific investigation and engineering work on permafrost. SCAR and IASC are partners of the IPA.

Other SCAR-related Newsletters

Climate and Cryosphere (CliC) Project Newsletter Now Available

The World Climate Research Programme (WCRP), the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), and the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) co-sponsor the Climate and Cryosphere Project (CliC), which was initiated by the WCRP in 2000. Its goal is to stimulate, support and coordinate research that focuses on processes by which the cryosphere interacts with the rest of the climate system.

To view current and earlier issues of Ice and Climate News, visit the CliC newsletter web page.

Latest Newsletters from other groups

Events

Climate Change Colloquium

From 27 to 31 October, Punta Arenas in Chile will host an international Colloquium on Climate Change. The Colloquium, sponsored by the Regional Fund for Innovation and Competitiveness (FIC-R) and the National Commission for Science and Technology (CONICYT), will host a meeting of outstanding international and Chilean scientists, with local authorities, students and other members of the civil society, to examine Climate Change from different perspectives. They will share the results of relevant research activities and their impact on biophysical systems of the planet, particularly in the Magellanic and Antarctic Region. For more information, please visit the Colloquium website.

AGU Chapman Conference Co-Sponsored by SCAR

On March 15-17, 2010 a major conference will be convened in Baltimore, Maryland on subglacial aquatic environments research and exploration entitled "AGU Chapman Conference on the Exploration and Study of Antarctic Subglacial Aquatic Environments". The co-conveners are Martin Siegert, University of Edinburgh, and Chuck Kennicutt, Texas A&M University. With on-going and recent funding in excess of $25 million USD for three major SAE projects (Lake Vostok, Lake Ellsworth, and Whillans Ice Stream), SAE research is poised for major advancements over the next three to five years. The conference will communicate the most recent results to the wider community and share expertise in planning subglacial aquatic environment (SAE) exploration programmes. It will bring together a diverse group of experts, who might not otherwise collaborate or interact, to broaden the interdisciplinary nature of all aspects of SAE research. It will bridge existing knowledge to future research and will be a benchmark for SAE exploration and study. A longer-term objective is to create a sustainable, vibrant, and growing community of SAE researchers and enthusiasts. In addition, an AGU Monograph will be published chronicling the state-of-the art of SAE. The Conference is partially funded by SCAR, the SCAR Subglacial Antarctic Lake Environments (SALE) programme, the US National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs and the American Geophysical Union (AGU). For further details, registration and abstract submission guidelines, please visit the conference website. Travel grant programmes and special opportunities for under represented groups, students and early career scientists to attend will be announced shortly.

Oslo IPY Science Conference Programme Launched

The Oslo IPY Science Conference programme has now been agreed. To view it, go to the Conference web page and click on Programme on the top bar. This will produce a menu of individual theme sessions on the left hand side of the page.

Other Events

Other events of interest to the SCAR Community are listed on the Events page.

Newsletter prepared by Colin Summerhayes and Rosemary Nash, SCAR Secretariat. Please send feedback to info@scar.org