2020 August Sea Ice Outlook Report is Now Available Online Report
The 2020 August 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 August report, 39 contributions were received that included pan-Arctic predictions. Of those contributions, 10 included predictions for the Alaska Region and 7 included pan-Antarctic predictions. We received 13 submissions of sea-ice probability and 9 submissions of first ice-free date, and for the August report, ice advance dates were computed from four contributions. For 2020 we also 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 August Outlook value for September 2020 sea-ice extent is 4.30 million square kilometers, with quartiles of 4.1 and 4.5 million square kilometers. The median is close to the observed 2019 September sea-ice extent of 4.32 million square kilometers.
Arctic Research Seminar Series – Bridging Arts and Science Webinar
ARCUS invites registration for the next Arctic Research Seminar. This seminar, titled Bridging Arts and Science, will take place Monday, 21 September 2020 at 8:00 a.m. AKDT (9:00 a.m. PDT, 10:00 a.m. MDT, 11:00 a.m. CDT, 12:00 p.m. EDT).
The seminar will be presented by Matthew Burtner (University of Virginia), Leena Cho (University of Virginia), and Gabrielle Russomagno (School of Visual Arts). During this webinar presenters will discuss how their work spans science and the arts through media such as music, landscape architecture, and the visual arts.
Witness Community Highlights Publication
The August 2020 issue of Witness Community Highlights is now available online. This issue includes two articles: “Activity Updates from the Arctic Domain Awareness Center,” an overview of the Center’s mission-driven research efforts and projects; and “Co-Producing Knowledge of Shorefast Ice in Uummannaq Bay, West Greenland,” describing research efforts to combine remote sensing technology with community-based monitoring and local and Indigenous knowledge to better understand how shorefast ice has changed as the Arctic warms and how these changes matter to individuals and communities in the Uummannaq region.
ARCUS Annual Meeting Meeting
Please Save The Date! The 2020 ARCUS Annual Meeting will take place virtually this year on Thursday, 29 October 2020, 9-11am AKDT, 10am-12pm PDT, 11am-1pm MDT, 12-2pm CDT, 1-3pm EDT. ARCUS Annual Meetings serve as an important opportunity for for the Council of ARCUS Institutional Member Representatives, ARCUS Individual Members, and other members of the broader Arctic research community to connect with one another, the ARCUS Board of Directors, and staff. The meeting will be open to all interested participants and there is no cost to attend.
ARCUS Virtual Backgrounds Available Announcement
The Arctic Research Consortium of the United States (ARCUS) supports a rich range of Arctic research, education, and communication activities. Our Polar Media Archive is a valuable resource that is home to over 20,000 beautiful photos from across the Arctic. Of these, we’re proud to present 30 handpicked images to serve as virtual meeting backgrounds.
Witness the Arctic Publication
This issue includes news about the new NSF Director, Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan; updates from NSF’s Office of Polar Programs; summaries of recently released strategic plans from NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and from the American Geophysical Union (AGU); science articles about understanding circumpolar bear ceremonialism and about the changing carbon cycle of the Arctic Ocean; updates on the PolarTREC program and the Sea Ice Prediction Network–Phase 2 project; overviews of the first Navigating the New Arctic (NNA) Investigators Meeting and of the sixth annual APECS conference; comments from the ARCUS Executive Director, Board President, and other board members; and a highlight of ARCUS member institution, Kawerak, Inc.
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.
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.
Polar Technology Conference Presentations and Recordings Available Announcement
The Polar Technology Conference was held during 10–12 March 2020 in Boulder, Colorado. The goal of the meeting was to link experts in polar science and technology development to discuss current technological resources for polar research and identify barriers to research and application of technology for problems unique to polar regions. Recordings of plenary presentations and presentation files for talks and posters are now available on the conference webpage. This activity was a cooperative effort among the National Science Foundation’s Office of Polar Programs, the Arctic Research Consortium of the United States, and the polar research community.
Image Spotlight
A girl does the blanket toss at the final Nalukataq of the season, in Barrow, Alaska.
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