Date

Multiple IPY Oslo Science Conference Announcements
Norges Varemesse
Oslo, Norway
8-12 June 2010

Abstract Deadline for all Sessions: Wednesday, 20 January 2010

For further information on the conference, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/.

For details on abstract submission for any session, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/section/1257865053.48.

In this announcement:

  1. 3.1 - Ecosystem change in the Pacific Arctic in relation to the
    Pan-Arctic system

  2. 3.3 - Arctic-subArctic connections: Ecosystems and biodiversity

  3. 4.1 - Human health and well-being in the polar regions

  4. 4.2 - Natural resource exploration and utilization

  5. 5.2 - Polar observing systems

  6. 5.5 - Space for polar science


  1. 3.1 - Ecosystem change in the Pacific Arctic in relation to the
    Pan-Arctic system

Organizers of Session 3.1, "Ecosystem change in the Pacific Arctic in
relation to the Pan-Arctic system," announce a call for abstracts.

The Pacific sector of the Arctic is currently experiencing extreme
changes in sea ice extent, quality, and duration, with potential
long-range impacts to the arctic marine ecosystem. The special session
will focus on ecosystem status and change in the Pacific Arctic sector,
including how Pacific water transiting into the Arctic is modified over
the wide continental shelves and transported to the deep arctic basin,
as well as its global connectivity to the North Atlantic Ocean.

This session is international and interdisciplinary in scope, with a
goal to present an array of physical, biogeochemical, and biological
data from past and current research projects, especially those
undertaken during the International Polar Year (IPY). Because modeling
is key to understanding and forecasting the arctic system, regional and
pan-Arctic models that evaluate past and ongoing physical and
biogeochemical changes in the arctic system and that project various
scenarios associated with climate warming, are encouraged.

For further information, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/article/2009/1256511940.29.

Or contact:
Jackie Grebmeier
Email: jgrebmei [at] cbl.umces.edu


  1. 3.3 - Arctic-subArctic connections: Ecosystems and biodiversity

Organizers of Session 3.3, "Arctic-subArctic connections: Ecosystems and
biodiversity," announce a call for abstracts.

The pan-arctic region is tightly connected with the sub-Arctic through
significant supplies of Atlantic and Pacific water through the European
Arctic Corridor and the Bering Strait. The advection of water,
nutrients, biomass, and species from the south through the sub-Arctic
has an essential impact on the function of the Arctic Ocean and the
function and biodiversity of pan-arctic ecosystems. This supply is
compensated by arctic water, nutrients, and biomass leaving the
pan-Arctic through the western section of the pan-Arctic and the
Canadian Archipelago.

The exchange of water and biomass through the sub-arctic region is
essential for one of the world's most significant bioresources.
Decreasing ice-cover and increasing temperatures of in-flowing waters
induces changes in the productivity and biodiversity of both the
resource-rich sub-Arctic and the pan-arctic region.

Several IPY projects such as C3O and iAOOS as well as earlier
investigations (e.g. - SBI and CABANERA) have resulted in detailed
information about the sub-arctic/pan-arctic connection and its
implication for the pan-arctic ecosystems and biodiversity. The session
creates a setting where information regarding the physical forcing,
ecosystem dynamics, and biodiversity changes are assembled and
discussed.

For further information, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/article/2009/1256513228.2.

Or contact:
Paul Wassmann
Email: paul.wassmann [at] uit.no


  1. 4.1 - Human health and well-being in the polar regions

Organizers of Session 4.1, "Human health and well-being in the polar
regions," announce a call for abstracts. Contributions are being sought
from researchers in the fields of polar medicine, psychology, sociology,
human geography, and the related fields of tourism, community health,
epidemiology, human adaptation to extreme and unusual environments, and
management of health-related activities in the polar regions.

This session will present the latest social and life sciences research
on human health and well-being in the polar regions. Presentations of
twenty minutes are invited. Interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary
will be particularly welcomed. A list of topics might include, but is
not limited to:

- Social and medical impacts of global changes;
- Resilience in individuals, small groups, and settlements;
- New medical technologies and practices;
- Emerging issues in the health and well-being of polar sojourners
and residents;
- Current research in individual psychological adaptation;
- Interactions between polar and temperate region groups;
- Impacts on health and well-being due to economic initiatives and
activities (e.g. - tourism, mineral exploration, and development);
and
- Applications of findings in the polar regions to other challenging
environments.

For further information, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/article/2009/1246271655.28.

Or contact:
Gary Steel
Email: gary.steel [at] lincoln.ac.nz

Emma Stewart
Email: emma.stewart [at] lincoln.ac.nz

Alan J. Parkinson
Email: ajp1 [at] cdc.gov


  1. 4.2 - Natural resource exploration and utilization

Organizers of Session 4.2, "Natural resource exploration and
utilization," announce a call for abstracts.

This session will explore the development of large-scale natural
resource utilization in the polar areas in the past and the present, as
well as its geo-political consequences and the increasing tensions
between different security perspectives surrounding oil and gas
exploration. It explores the tension between the notion of freedom of
access to the resources of the polar areas, and the networks of private
capital, states, and international political and legal regimes that
control and sustain this notion of freedom.

Organizers invite abstracts for papers dealing with the development of
large scale natural resources exploitation - whaling, mining, hunting,
oil and gas - in the Arctic and in Antarctica, and its relation with
polar science, different security perspectives and geopolitics.

For further information, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/article/2009/1246272385.62.

Or contact:
Dag Avango
Email: d.avango [at] rug.nl

Louwrens Hacquebord
Email: L.Hacquebord [at] rug.nl

Gunhild Hoogensen
Email: gunhild.hoogensen [at] uit.no


  1. 5.2 - Polar observing systems

Organizers of Session 5.2, "Polar observing systems," announce a call
for abstracts.

Linked physical, geological, biological, chemical, and human
observations of the atmosphere, oceans, ice, and land, and
multidisciplinary observations, including social and human systems and
engaging polar residents, constitute an intensive activity of the IPY.
Observing systems and infrastructure will leave a significant legacy of
the IPY and provide long-term support to polar research. Improved
spatial and temporal coverage of many data sets, and building capacity
for observing and monitoring in local arctic communities, will enable
determination of the present environmental status and establish a
baseline for identifying and forecasting future change.

Coordinated, international efforts to sustain and connect polar
observing systems to larger global observing systems are underway for
the Arctic and Antarctic. For the Arctic, the Arctic Council together
with the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) and other
partners have established the Sustaining Arctic Observing Networks
(SAON) to achieve long-term, arctic-wide observing activities that
provide free, open, and timely access to high quality data that will
realize pan-arctic and global value-added services and societal
benefits. For the Antarctic, the Scientific Committee on Antarctic
Research (SCAR) is developing individual observing systems. The
mechanism of coordination and or integration between them is under
review.

This session provides an opportunity to present and discuss community,
ground, and ocean based polar observing systems. The conveners envision
a session which will include sub-sessions looking at ocean observing
systems, land-based, atmospheric, and cryospheric observing systems, as
well as community based systems. Organizers encourage contributions from
both the Arctic and Antarctic.

For further information, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/article/2009/1257764911.36.

Or contact:
Volker Rachold
Email: volker.rachold [at] iasc.info

Shari Gearheard
Email: sharig [at] qiniq.com

Mike Willis
Email: mjw272 [at] cornell.edu

Martin Nweeia
Email: martin_nweeia [at] hsdm.harvard.edu


  1. 5.5 - Space for polar science

Organizers of Session 5.5, "Space for polar science," announce a call
for abstracts.

The unique dimension provided by regular synoptic views of the
high-latitude regions by Earth observing satellites has resulted in
breathtakingly rapid development of satellite data applications in all
aspects of polar science. Since the flight of Sputnik, and coincident
1957-58 International Geophysical Year, this new space frontier has seen
rapid technical advances towards today's satellite-based polar observing
system infrastructure.

IPY 2007-2008 has seen unified international engagement and response of
Space Agencies to the scientific challenges posed by IPY projects. The
result is a spectacular array of new snapshot satellite products and
valuable new data time-series with which to address some of the most
important scientific, social, and economic questions of our time. This
session solicits abstracts that describe the broad array of unique
space-based contributions to IPY, the new geophysical products, and
examples of results from the world-class science being undertaken with
satellite data captured over both poles.

For further information, please go to:
http://www.ipy-osc.no/article/2009/1258985707.07.

Or contact:
Mark Drinkwater
Email: mark.drinkwater [at] esa.int