2008 ARCSS eTown Meeting

The ARCSS Committee held a community eTown Meeting focused on “Changing Seasonality in the Arctic System.” Through an ARCSS Community of Practice and discussions at several community venues, including the ARCSS Synthesis Workshop in October 2007, the topic of changing seasonality has emerged as a priority for understanding the arctic system, and the NSF ARCSS Program has announced a “Changing Seasonality in the Arctic System (CSAS)” research solicitation.

The timing and dynamics of key events such as spring melt and fall freeze-up are shifting in response to a changing arctic climate, impacting the interconnected physical, biological, and human components and processes of the arctic system. Thus, to gain predictability and understanding of the Arctic, more knowledge is needed of changes in the seasonal timing and synchrony of events that are critical to the functioning of the system.

This eTown Meeting provided an open community forum to discuss the development of the “Changing Seasonality” effort, a community vision for interdisciplinary seasonality science, and ARCSS-relevant seasonality science questions that address system-level understanding.

This eTown Meeting took place on Tuesday, 19 August 2008, at 11:00 a.m. Alaska Daylight Time.