New Resources Available Through PolarTREC Education
We are excited to announce new resources available through the PolarTREC website. Whether you are a classroom teacher looking for new lessons for next fall or an informal science educator looking for new ideas to use with your audiences - PolarTREC has resources for you! Recently published resources include:
- Growing Up on Ice – In this STEM-based lesson, students analyze Weddell seal pup growth data, collected by the Growing Up on Ice, B-030, research team.
- Don’t Clam Up - The Effect of Warming Seas on Respiration and Biomass – This lesson plan is designed to teach students about the importance of the benthic community in the shallow portions of the Arctic and how climate change may affect their respiration.
- Jumping Into Warming Seas – This lesson introduces students to the impacts of increasing ocean temperatures on marine life.
SIPN2 Webinar Webinar
SAVE THE DATE for a Sea Ice Prediction Network webinar titled “Machine Learning—Challenges and Opportunities for Applications in Sea-Ice Prediction” scheduled for Wednesday, 29 July 2020 from 8:00 9:00 am (AKDT). This webinar will focus on the use of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence, on how such approaches can be applied in cryospheric research, as well as related challenges and limitations. Discussion will include the use of advanced machine learning algorithms in climate science with attention on how to improve the prediction of future sea-ice. Time for participant questions will follow the presentations. Registration instructions will be announced closer to the event.
Witness Community Highlights Publication
The June 2020 issue of Witness Community Highlights is now available online. This issue includes two articles: “Arctic Data Center's New Customizable Portal Service,” summarizing features, applications, and examples of effective use of the new data tool; and “US Arctic Research Commission Hosts Virtual Conference and Workshop,” highlighting discussion panels and topics addressed during the virtual conference on COVID-19 Impacts in the Arctic, held in mid-May 2020; as well as an overview of the Virtual Alaska Electric Vehicle (EV) Workshop held in mid-June 2020.
Call for Sea Ice Outlook Contributions Call for Input
The Sea Ice Prediction Network–Phase 2 (SIPN2) announces the Call for Contributions for the 2020 Sea Ice Outlook July Report (based on May and June data). The Sea Ice Outlook (SIO) provides an open process for those interested in Arctic sea ice to share ideas. Pan-Arctic and Regional Sea Ice Extent Outlooks and any additional figures and gridded fields will be accepted for the 2020 July Outlook. We particularly encourage submissions for the Alaska region (i.e., Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort seas). All participants whose methods provide information at the local scale to are encouraged to provide full spatial fields via the SIPN Data Portal. First ice-free dates (IFD) for Hudson Bay will be calculated from the full spatial fields that cover this region. For those interested, submissions the September 2020 80% sea ice concentration contour for Fram Strait are also invited. The 2020 SIO will also accept pan-Antarctic sea ice extent of the September monthly mean. Additionally, we encourage submissions to the associated effort of the Sea Ice Drift Forecast Experiment.
Submission deadline: 6:00 p.m. (AKDT) Monday, 13 July 2020 (Firm).
2020 June Sea Ice Outlook Report is Now Available Report
The 2020 June Sea Ice Outlook (SIO) report is now available online. The Sea Ice Outlook, an effort managed by the Sea Ice Prediction Network–Phase 2 (SIPN2), provides an open process for those interested in Arctic sea ice to share predictions and ideas. The monthly reports contain a variety of perspectives—from advanced numerical models to qualitative perspectives from citizen scientists. The Outlook is not an operational forecast.
For the 2020 June report, 33 contributions were received that included pan-Arctic predictions. Of those contributions eight included predictions for pan-Antarctic and the Alaska Region. Additionally, we received 13 submissions of sea-ice probability and ten submissions of first ice-free date. New this year, the report includes ice-free conditions for the Hudson Bay region; September sea-ice concentration contour in the Fram Strait region, motivated by the MOSAiC expedition; and we invited contributors to submit initial conditions (sea-ice concentration and sea-ice thickness) of their forecasts to better understand how observations are being used in forecasts.
For the pan-Arctic, the median June Outlook value for September 2020 sea-ice extent is 4.33 million square kilometers, with quartiles of 4.06 and 4.59 million square kilometers. The median is close to the 2019 June Outlook, of 4.40 million square kilometers, and to the observed 2019 September sea-ice extent of 4.32 million square kilometers.
Accounting Assistant Position Job Opening
ARCUS is seeking an Accounting Assistant. This position, based in Fairbanks, Alaska, reports to the Director of Finance and Human Resources and provides accounting and administrative support to ARCUS. The position is temporary part-time with the possibility of developing into regular part-time.
2020 Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook Season Closes Project Update
The Sea Ice for Walrus Outlook concluded the 2020 season on Friday, 12 June after twelve weeks of weekly reports featuring local observations from seven Bering Strait Communities, National Weather Service sea ice and weather forecasts, and NWS and ACCAP satellite images. All reports are available in our archive. Thank you to our local observers and partners for a productive season!
Navigating the New Arctic (NNA) Investigators Meeting Talks, Reports, & Summary Notes Announcement
Lightning talk videos, project update reports, and summary notes from the first Navigating the New Arctic (NNA) Investigators Meeting are now available and can be found on the NNA Investigators Meeting webpage. The meeting was held virtually 16-17 April 2020.
Witness Community Highlights Publication
The May 2020 issue of Witness Community Highlights is now available online. This issue includes “Winter Worlds Project Highlights the Wonders of Snow in Alaska and Beyond.” This article summarizes the science education efforts of the Informal Science Learning project, “Our Winter World,” with examples of snow-themed community science nights in Alaskan villages; the design and development of a traveling museum exhibition on snow; and research exploring how cultural background affects learning in museum settings.
Arctic Research Seminar Series with Gerald “J.J.” Frost Webinar
ARCUS invites registration for our next Arctic Research Seminar featuring Gerald “J.J.” Frost (Alaska Biological Research, Inc.). This seminar, discussing the “greening” of the Arctic, will be held Friday, 29 May 2020 from 9:00-10:00 a.m. AKDT (1:00-2:00 p.m. EDT) online via Zoom.
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