Articles & Interviews
Sciencepoles articles look at key findings from a range of polar science and research fields. Our articles RSS feed will inform you when new articles are published on this website.
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Beyond Oslo: Milestones, Perspectives, and Priorities for International Polar Research
13.08.2010
With the passing of the International Polar Year 2007-08, the closing of the IPY Oslo Science Conference 2010, and the continuing growing importance of the Polar Regions within the public and scientific debate surrounding climate change, this begs the question: What next for international polar research?
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Marie-Pierre Lardeau: Vulnerability of Inuit Communities in a Changing Arctic
29.07.2010
Food security (when food is available, accessible and of sufficient quality) is a major issue for the Inuit of northern Canada. Climate change is making it increasingly more difficult for hunters to access traditional hunting routes and changing animals’ natural distribution areas. On top of this, traditional hunting knowledge is…
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Steven Chown: Winner of the 2009 Martha T. Muse Prize for Science and Policy in Antarctica
01.07.2010
An outstanding researcher and world-renowned advisor to the Antarctic Treaty System, Professor Steven Chown of Stellenbosch University, South Africa, has been named the inaugural recipient of the prestigious Martha T. Muse Prize for Science and Policy in Antarctica. The prize was awarded at the recent IPY Oslo Science Conference. Professor…
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Mark Drinkwater on CryoSat-2 and its Mission
03.06.2010
With the successful launch of CryoSat-2 on 8th April 2010, the European Space Agency (ESA) has put a powerful new tool for observing the cryosphere into orbit. The new satellite’s primary mission will be to measure changes in the thickness of both sea ice and land ice.
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Nicolas Epchtein Talks about Astronomy at Dome C
12.05.2010
Dome C on the Antarctic Plateau is an ideal place to conduct astronomical observations. The ARENA (Antarctic Research, a European Network for Astrophysics) consortium of 22 European and Australian partners including polar institutes, research laboratories and industrial companies has been investigating research possibilities, installing instruments, and planning to construct an…
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ARENA: Developing a New European Astronomical Observatory at Dome C
11.05.2010
While the climate of Antarctica is extremely harsh and difficult to work in, it is an ideal place to conduct astronomy. The fact that the continent is cold, dry and far from any major sources of pollution make for clear atmospheric conditions. And due to its months-long polar days and…
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Princess Elisabeth Antarctica: Changing the Way We Think about Using Energy
29.04.2010
Belgium’s new Antarctic research station, the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica (PEA), is unique in that is was designed and built to be the world’s first “zero emission” polar research station, running entirely on renewable wind and solar power. Built in the Dronning Maud Land of East Antarctica as Belgium’s main contribution…
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ICED: Integrating Climate and Ecosystem Dynamics in the Southern Ocean
02.04.2010
Some of the most evident expressions of global climate change have been found in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Changes to the environment, including modifications in sea ice extent and concentration, have been associated with variations in ecosystems (including changes in seabird and krill abundance in particular areas) and biogeochemical…
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UN Convention on Biological Diversity Secretariat Discusses Ocean Acidification
08.03.2010
The world’s oceans are a natural sink for carbon dioxide, both organically and inorganically.
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Sridhar Anandakrishnan on the Thwaites Glacier and Using UAVs for Glacier Research
18.02.2010
Sridhar Anandakrishnan is a leading expert on the ice streams of West Antarctica, in particular the Thwaites glacier and other fast-flowing glaciers responsible for draining the interior of the ice sheet. As Professor at the Department of Geosciences at Pennsylvania State University working closely with CReSIS, the Center for the…
