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About

Witness the Arctic provides information on current arctic research efforts and findings, significant research initiatives, national policy affecting arctic research, international activities, and profiles of institutions with major arctic research efforts. Witness serves an audience of arctic scientists, educators, agency personnel, and policy makers. Witness was published biannually in hardcopy from 1995-2008 (archives are available below) and is currently published online 3-4 times annually, depending on newsworthy events.

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Spring 2011 PDF (1.4 MB)
Witness the Arctic Volume 15 Issue 2

Archives

With the Spring 2009 issue, ARCUS changed the format of Witness the Arctic. To provide more frequent updates and reduce printing and mailing costs and associated environmental impacts, the newsletter is now distributed online in three or four shorter issues per year, depending on newsworthy events.

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If you have a question or an idea for a Witness article, contact Betsy Turner-Bogren at betsy [at] arcus [dot] org.

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Distribution Date: 3 June 2011

Witness the Arctic | Volume 15, Number 2 - Spring 2011

Feature Article

Linking Inuit Knowledge and Scientific Understanding of Environmental Change: A Case Study in Wind Observations
Photo courtesy: Shari Gearheard
Climate scientists and others investigating changes in the Arctic have increasingly incorporated indigenous knowledge and observations in their research. Valuable insights are gained by linking indigenous knowledge with scientific research, however, finding formal methods to connect culturally...
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Articles

Interagency Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH)

Study of Environmental Arctic Change
SEARCH Updates
SEARCH Strategic Planning The SEARCH Science Steering Committee (SSC) is continuing its strategic planning activities that began at the fall 2010 SSC meeting. As SEARCH is transitioning from a planning phase to an implementation phase, the SSC is developing a guiding vision, five-year goals, and an...
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Arctic System Science Program

Study of the Northern Alaskan Coastal Systems (SNACS)
Study of the Northern Alaskan Coastal Systems (SNACS) Products Online
A compilation of products from the National Science Foundation-funded Study of the Northern Alaskan Coastal System (SNACS) research projects is now available online. SNACS projects focused on the arctic coastal zone of Alaska and addressed one or more aspects of two coupled themes: How vulnerable...
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Arctic Natural Sciences Program

Changes in permafrost temperature at different depths.
High-Resolution Permafrost Modeling and Planning Implications for Greenland and Alaska
Introduction and Project Objectives Permafrost has received much attention recently because surface temperatures are rising in most permafrost areas of the earth, bringing permafrost to the edge of widespread thawing and degradation. The thawing of permafrost already occurring at the southern...
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Arctic Research Support and Logistics

Photo courtesy: Mike Castellini
ARCUS Board President Honored in R/V Sikuliaq Keel-Laying Ceremony
Vera Alexander, President of the ARCUS Board of Directors, participated in the keel-laying ceremony for Research Vessel (R/V) Sikuliaq, an icebreaker specifically designed for scientific research in arctic waters. On 11 April 2011 at the site of the ship’s construction in Marinette, Wisconsin,...
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Science Education News

Image courtesy: C. Hiemstra.
Snow Science Expedition: Traveling 2000 km on Snowmobiles for Outreach and Education
The four of us left Fairbanks, Alaska on 26 March 2010, headed for Barrow and Prudhoe Bay on four snowmobiles pulling eight sleds. Our route was historic; it retraced the 1924 U.S. Geological Survey expedition led by Philip Smith and J. B. Mertie, Jr. Theirs was the first scientific expedition to...
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National Science Foundation News

Photo courtesy: Melanie Duchin
A Conversation with Dr. Brendan P. Kelly, Deputy Director of NSF’s Arctic Sciences Division
Earlier this spring Witness the Arctic (WTA) had the opportunity to visit with Dr. Brendan P. Kelly (BPK). We asked a few questions about his new role as Deputy Director at NSF's Division of Arctic Sciences. Here are excerpts from that conversation.
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Interagency News

Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC) Meeting of Principal Members
IARPC Principal Members met 26 April 2011. This was their first meeting since IARPC became a subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) in July 2010. Key issues IARPC members were briefed on and discussed include:
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Arctic Landscape Conservation Cooperative
The Arctic Landscape Conservation Cooperative: Leveraging Arctic Climate Science
Facilitated by the Department of the Interior, Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs) were established to provide a collaborative approach to conservation management. An initial federal investment of $25 million in 2010 funded the first nine LCCs of the 21 planned across North America. The LCCs...
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Scientists installing an ice mass balance buoy (IMB)
Arctic News from the Office of Naval Research
The Office of Naval Research (ONR) has launched a new program in the Ocean, Atmosphere, and Space Research Division of the Ocean Battlespace Sensing Department entitled "Arctic and Global Prediction." This program, a combination of new and realigned efforts, responds to the fifth focus area of the...
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Arctic Vision and Strategy
NOAA Releases Final Arctic Vision and Strategy
In February, NOAA released its final Arctic Vision and Strategy, which provides a high-level framework and strategic goals to address NOAA's highest priorities in the Arctic. Arctic Vision and Strategy According to the vision document, NOAA will focus its efforts on the following six priority goals...
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U.S. Arctic Research Commission

Fran Ulmer
Fran Ulmer Appointed Chair of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission
Fran Ulmer Appointed Chair of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission President Barack Obama appointed Fran Ulmer to a four-year term as the Chair of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission (USARC) on 10 March 2011. Ulmer is Chancellor of the University of Alaska Anchorage.
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International News

International Study of Arctic Change (ISAC)
Workshop on International Collaboration and Cooperation in Arctic Science
The International Study of Arctic Change (ISAC) convened a workshop on international cooperation in the Arctic 30 May–1 June in Fairbanks, Alaska. About 30 participants representing international arctic programs attended the workshop from countries including Japan, China, Korea, Norway, Denmark,...
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ARCUS

  • Arctic Research Consortium of the United States
  • 3535 College Road
  • Suite 101
  • Fairbanks, AK 99709 USA
  • Phone: 907-474-1600
  • Fax: 907-474-1604
  • info [at] arcus [dot] org
  • www.arcus.org

Executive Director: Susan E. Fox

Editors: Betsy Turner-Bogren, Kristina Creek, Helen Wiggins

Contributors: G. Balogh, K. Creek, H. Eiken, S. Gearheard, M. Jeffries, B.P. Kelly, P. Martin, M. Murray, V. Romanovsky, M. Sturm, B. Turner-Bogren, H. Wiggins

ARCUS is a nonprofit organization consisting of institutions organized and operated for educational, professional, or scientific purposes. Established by its member institutions in 1988 with the primary mission of strengthening arctic research, ARCUS activities are funded through cooperative agreements with NSF and the National Park Service, grants from NSF, a contract with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and membership dues.

Witness the Arctic is published periodically by ARCUS. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of NSF.

  • http://www.arcus.org/witness-the-arctic/2011/2