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The Polar Geospatial Center and the University of Minnesota are pleased to announce the 2015 University of Minnesota Summer Polar Boot Camp, an intensive, five-day geospatial workshop held from August 17th to 21st on the Twin Cities campus of the University of Minnesota.

The Summer Polar Boot Camp focuses on applications of commercial satellite imagery for polar science and operations. A proficiency with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a prerequisite for admission to the workshop. See a full summary of topics and courses on the Polar Boot Camp website.

Timeline
Application opens: April 1, 2015
Application deadline: June 1, 2015
Notification of acceptance: June 6, 2015
Course fee due: July 1, 2015
Workshop begins: August 17, 2015

The 29th (2015) Forum for Research into Ice Shelf Processes (FRISP) workshop will be held in conjunction with the International Glaciological Society's meeting in Cambridge, UK, 17-22 August 2015.

FRISP was started in 1984, and used to mean "Filchner-Ronne-Ice-Shelf-Programme". FRISP is a subcommittee of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) Working Group of Glaciology. For several years the work of the FRISP parties was focused on the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf (FRIS). But meanwhile the geographical restriction to FRIS was widened up and other ice shelves have been included into the investigations. FRISP started out as an European forum, but now welcomes any scientist working on ice shelves and related issues. FRISP remains a focus on glaciology, but the scope is extended to include continental shelf oceanography, meteorology, and quaternary paleoclimatology to encourage discussion between these disciplines.

The International Glaciological Society (IGS) will hold an International Symposium on 'Contemporary ice-sheet dynamics: ocean interaction, meltwater and non-linear effects' in 2015, in Cambridge, UK, from 16–21 August 2015.

The meeting will bring together researchers from the oceanographic and glaciological communities who use observational and modeling tools in the study of ice-sheet stability, surface mass balance and its influence on glacier dynamics, ice stream–ice shelf interaction, ice-sheet basal properties, sub-glacial hydrology, tidewater glaciers and ocean interactions, ice shelf mass balance, ice shelf stability, iceberg calving, oceanographic circulation and processes within sub-ice shelf cavities, circulation and ocean heat transfer through fjord systems, continental shelf processes that modify oceanographic conditions and processes beneath ice shelves, and teleconnections that influence shelf seas. By bringing all these communities together, the aim of the meeting is to establish an integrated understanding of this interrelated sequence of processes that ultimately link open- ocean variations with changes in the inland ice sheet, and to provide an overview of the current state of knowledge in this rapidly-moving field of research.

TOPICS
Following on from the discussion above, topic areas will cover the sequence of environments and disciplines from the open ocean to the inland ice sheet, and include observations and modeling of:
1. Transport of ocean heat across the continental shelf break (oceanographic mechanisms that allow heat onto the continental shelf, influence of teleconnections, shelf break ocean dynamics)
2. Continental shelf ocean processes (processes influencing shelf conditions, circulation in proglacial fjords, impacts on the ice shelf cavity and tidewater glacier calving fronts, air-sea exchange, sea-ice formation, coastal polynyas)
3. Sub-ice-shelf processes and environment (ice shelf basal mass balance, ice- ocean boundary layer, sub-ice shelf heat transport)
4. Tidewater glacier and ice-shelf stability (iceberg calving processes, impact of sub-glacial drainage on ice front processes, ice-shelf disintegration, structure of ice shelves)
5. Ice sheet-stream-shelf glaciology (impact of ice shelves on ice streams, grounding line dynamics, upstream propagation of grounding line changes, ice stream dynamics, ice stream basal conditions, sub-ice stream hydrology, ice sheet and ice stream mass balance)
6. Dynamics and stability of ice sheets (evidence of past ice sheet instability from proxies, observed state of the great ice sheets, non-linear dynamical processes)
7. Integrated understanding of the processes linking oceans and ice sheets,and changes therein (external drivers and internal instabilities, interactions between these, model predictions of future behavior and implications thereof, overall effect of ocean and atmosphere on changes in the great ice sheets)

Please note that the abstract submission system is separate from the IGS portal. You will have to register your details if you have not submitted an abstract with us before.

If you have not already done so please go to http://www.igsoc.org/symposia/2015/cambridge/ and register your interest to attend as that will ensure you receive all future communications relating to the symposium.

Please go to at http://www.igsoc.org/symposia/2015/cambridge/ and submit your abstracts.

The second circular is posted on the IGS website. http://www.igsoc.org/symposia/2015/cambridge/

Please note that there is a discrepancy in the printed version of second circular. The correct abstract deadline is 19 April. This has been corrected in in the online version.

This workshop will be held in Cambridge on Sunday afternoon, 16 August 2015, right before the IGS meeting. The precise location and time will be announced soon.

Ice‐ocean interactions are considered to lie at the basis of current and future ice mass loss of the Antarctic ice sheet. One of the feedback mechanisms that can be generated through such ice‐ocean interaction is the so‐called marine ice sheet instability, which generates at present the most important uncertainty for the projections of sea level in the context of global warming.

A set of 3 types of idealized intercomparison experiments for studying marine ice sheet processes in ice‐sheet, ocean and coupled models have been developed over the past year. MISMIP+ was announced at EGU 2014 and presented at AGU 2014. The remaining experiments (ISOMIP+ and MISOMIP1) were conceived of at WCRP Climate and Cryosphere workshop at NYU Abu Dhabi in October 2015. All three experiments were presented at the MISOMIP Splinter meeting at EGU (April 2015) by Xylar Asay‐Davis and Stephen Cornford.

• MISMIP+, the third Marine Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project, in which a marine ice sheet is forced by the ocean (chair Stephen Cornford and Hilmar Gudmundsson)
• ISOMIP+, the second Ice Shelf‐Ocean Model Intercomparison Project, where the ocean (and sub‐ice shelf cavity) is forced by a prescribed marine ice sheet geometry changing with time (chair Xylar Asay‐Davis)
• MISOMIP1: the first Marine Ice Sheet‐Ocean Model Intercomparison Project, a coupling of MISMIP+ and ISOMIP+ (chair Xylar Asay‐Davis)

More information is available on the MISOMIP website: http://www.climate‐cryosphere.org/activities/targeted/misomip

The design of these experiments will be published by this summer (in the Copernicus journal GMD).

Therefore, the meeting in August will be an excellent opportunity to:

• Explain what the relation is between this set of experiments and ISMIP6 (ice sheet intercomparison in connection with CMIP6). Several communities are concerned by these experiments and it is important that these communities understand each other.
• Have a progress report on these 3 intercomparison projects
• Discuss the timeline of the intercomparison and the various deadlines for submission and evaluation of MISIMP+, ISOMIP+ and MISOMIP1 experimental results.

Registration

To register, please send an e‐mail to:
ismass2015cambridge [at] gmail.com
indicating your name, position and institution.

Grants for Early Career Scientists

An announcement will soon be made through the CRYOLIST (by about 15 May).


The National Academies’ Polar Research Board is pleased to announce that the report “A Strategic Vision for NSF Investments in Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research” will be released on Tuesday, August 11 at 11:00 AM EDT. A PDF version of the report will be available for free download at that time at http://dels.nas.edu/prb/.

This study builds directly upon an extensive process to gather input and ideas from Antarctic and Southern Ocean researchers across the country.

You are invited to join us for a webinar presentation and discussion of the report on August 11th at 1:00 PM EDT. Robin Bell (Co-Chair) and other members of the authoring Committee will lead a discussion about the report’s main outcomes and recommendations. If you would like to join the webinar, please register here: http://dels.nas.edu/Upcoming-Event/Strategic-Planning-Antarctic-Souther….

Further questions can be addressed to:
Lauren Everett
Email: leverett [at] nas.edu

The Network for Sustainable Climate Risk Management (SCRiM) links an international, transdisciplinary team of climate scientists, economists, philosophers, statisticians, engineers, and policy analysts to answer the question, “What are sustainable, scientifically sound, technologically feasible, economically efficient, and ethically defensible climate risk management strategies?”

As a central part of its educational and research mission, SCRiM hosts an annual summer school to foster opportunities for collaboration and to provide a solid foundation in the broad, multidisciplinary knowledge, tools, and methods of the diverse fields participating in the network.

A key focus of the workshop will be developing a common vocabulary to help foster enhanced cross-disciplinary communication, enabling the possibility for future collaborative research. Participants will also gain hands-on experience with key methods and tools including robust decision making, use of simple models, and analysis of relevant datasets.

Lodging and meals are provided for all participants. In most cases, we are also able to provide full travel support.

This program is targeted at advanced graduate students and postdocs. However, in special circumstances, we may be willing to consider applications from other early-career professionals who have recently completed their master’s or doctoral degrees and are working in SCRiM-relevant fields.

To apply, visit scrimhub.org/summer-school. Apply by 22 March 2015 to receive full consideration.

Instructors & Sessions

• Chris Caldwell - Tribal Perspectives on Climate Change
• Chris Forest - Earth System Modeling
• Murali Haran - Uncertainty Quantification
• Klaus Keller - Risk Analysis
• Robert Lempert - Policy Analysis and Robust Decisionmaking
• Robert Nicholas - Climate Data Analysis
• Alan Robock - Geoengineering
• Christian Traeger - Integrated Assessment
• Nancy Tuana - Coupled Epistemic-Ethical Analysis

Please contact Katerina Kostadinova (katerina [at] psu.edu) with any questions.

The application period for the “Summer School on Mass Balance Measurements and Analysis is now open”. This course will be held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, from 2-8 August 2015 with theoretical lectures taking place at the Central Asian Institute for Applied Geosciences and practical training in field work and safety aspects on nearby Golubin Glacier in the Ala Archa Range.

There is a limited number of about a dozen training positions which will be offered to candidates from the following Central Asian countries: Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. During the selection process, priority will be given to candidates involved in established mass balance programmes.

Letters of application including a CV can be sent to: marlene.kronenberg [at] unifr.ch

Deadline for application is 28 February 2015.

This summer school is carried out within the framework of the project “Capacity Building and Twinning for Climate Observing Systems” (CATCOS) which is led by MeteoSwiss and supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). The event is co-sponsored by UNESCO through its Almaty Cluster Office for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

For more details and updates, please check the summer school website.

The North Pacific Research Board (NPRB) announces the release of the Arctic Program request for pre-proposals. Pre-proposals must be submitted on or before 31 July 2015; the anticipated deadline for full proposals is 15 January 2016.

NPRB is launching an Arctic Integrated Ecosystem Research Program in partnership with several collaborating organizations and agencies. NPRB and funding partners seek to develop a coordinated, collaborative program to fund science that will improve understanding of Arctic marine ecosystems. The program aims to inform a mechanistic understanding of the processes that structure the marine ecosystem and influence the distribution, life history, and interactions of biological communities in the Chukchi Sea, Bering Strait, and northern Bering Sea. NPRB intends to fund several projects that will integrate to achieve this goal.

This program is a collaborative partnership -- the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the North Slope Borough/Shell Baseline Studies Program have each contributed funds to support new research associated with this program. Several other institutions and agencies have identified ongoing research that will coordinate with and contribute to this program, and additional participation is welcome.

Pre-proposal deadline: 31 July 2015.

For further information and additional resources, please go to: http://www.nprb.org/arctic-program/request-for-proposals.

If you have questions or are interested in discussing partnership opportunities, please contact:

Matthew Baker
Email: Matthew.Baker [at] nprb.org

Danielle Dickson
Email: Danielle.Dickson [at] nprb.org

Once every four years, Quaternary researchers from all over the world meet at the INQUA Congress to exchange the latest research results and develop agendas for the years to come. In 2015, the Congress will take place in Nagoya, Japan. The knowledge gained from Quaternary research, particularly from past records of unusual events and abrupt changes, is invaluable for understanding nature and taking appropriate actions to mitigate natural risks. Scientists involved in Quaternary studies must generously contribute their knowledge to help minimize the effects of disasters from hazardous natural processes.

Since 1928, INQUA, the International Union for Quaternary Research, has promoted communication and international collaboration in Quaternary research. The current scientific scope of INQUA is reflected by its five Commissions:

• Coastal and Marine Processes
• Palaeoclimate
• Humans and Biosphere
• Stratigraphy and Chronology
• Terrestrial Processes, Deposits and History

The Congress program will address the themes of the Commissions during 6 days of oral and poster sessions, plenary presentations, and side meetings. The scientific program will be garnished with social events at scenic spots, and of course, in the tradition of INQUA Congresses, with attractive field trips before, during, and after the Congress week.

Important Dates:

• 8 January 2015: New deadline for abstract submission and financial support submission
• 28 February 2015: Deadline for early registration

Visit the conference website for more information.

This third workshop of the PALeo constraints on SEA level rise 2 (PALSEA2) working group builds upon and complements previous workshops by focussing on the integration of data and models to better understand and constrain past changes in sea level, the cryosphere and climate with a primary aim to produce more accurate projections of future changes in ice extent and sea level. As in previous PALSEA2 workshops, a focus will be on data and modeling for past warm periods when ice extent was similar to or less than that at present (e.g. mid-Holocene, last interglacial, mid-Pliocene) with a key goal being to place improved constraints on the amplitudes and rates of sea level changes during such periods. However, data and model results for other periods are also of interest.

We encourage abstracts from colleagues who reconstruct changes in sea level, the cryosphere and climate from the geological record and/or apply models to interpret the observations and better understand the processes responsible for these changes. The format will follow that of previous workshops with the schedule being split into coherent sessions with a handful of presentations in each – ranging from overview talks that highlight areas of uncertainty and/or poor understanding to those that are more detailed and focus on a specific problem. Ample time will be allocated for discussion on key issues or topics of contention. The intention is to attract a group of researchers that have a diverse and complementary range of expertise covering field and modelling approaches relevant to quantifying and understanding environmental changes that link sea level, the cryosphere and climate.

The workshop is scheduled immediately before the INQUA congress in Nagoya (27 July to 2 August) which is only a few hours away by train, making it possible to attend both meetings during one trip to Japan. Some funds will be available to support the attendance of early career researchers.

Confirmed keynote speakers include:

• Jacqueline Austermann (Harvard University),
• Jeremy Fyke (Los Alamos National Laboratory),
• Bette Otto-Bliesner (National Center for Atmospheric Research),
• Axel Timmermann (University of Hawaii).

To apply to the workshop:

• Email your abstract to gamilne [at] uottawa.ca by 15 February 2015
• Please use the subject heading: “PALSEA2 ABSTRACT: ORAL/POSTER” where you select oral or poster as your preference.
• Notification of participation will occur in March.

Abstract Formatting:

Please follow the following guidelines and use Times new roman 12pt font throughout. Margins
all set to 1”. Please submit as a Word document (not pdf).
TITLE (all caps, centered)
[skip one line]
Authors1: (centered: Last name, Initials with no periods or spaces)
[skip one line]
Institutions: (centered, Italics)
[skip one line]
Abstract text: left justified, no indent for first line of each paragraph, skip one line between
paragraphs, not to exceed one page in length.

Please contact Glenn Milne for further information (gamilne [at] uottawa.ca).