Transcript Slide 1

International Polar Year 2007-2009
Increasing Our Understanding of the Polar Regions
& Raising Awareness of their Global Importance
Martin O. Jeffries
National Science Foundation
Office of Polar Programs
GLOBE Workshop
Gallaudet University, 27 June 2007
What is IPY?
 International Polar Year will take place between March 2007 and
March 2009.
 IPY will be a period of intense, coordinated studies of physical,
biological, and human and social processes, interactions and
feedbacks in the Arctic and Antarctica.
 During IPY, researchers will work
at the frontiers of polar science
to improve our knowledge and
understanding of the role of the
polar regions in the global
environmental system.
Carl Weyprecht
& The First IPY - I
Reflecting on the thousands of scientific
observations made during the Second
Austro-Hungarian Polar Expedition, 18721874, Weyprecht wrote: “But whatever
interest all these observations may
possess, they do not possess the
scientific value, even supported by long
column of figures, which under other
circumstances might have been the case.
They only furnish us with a picture of the
extreme effects of the forces of Nature in
the Arctic regions, but leave us completely
in the dark with respect to their causes.”
(1875, J. Royal Geogr. Soc., XLV, 1-33.
Illustrations courtesy of Kevin Wood,
University of Washington, and Jim
Overland, NOAA-PMEL, Seattle.
C. Weyprecht: scientist and co-commander
of the 2nd Austro-Hungarian Polar Expedition
(1872-1874) from Novaya Zemlya to Franz
Josef Land.
FRANZ JOSEF LAND
NOVAYA
ZEMLYA
C. Weyprecht
1838-1881
Carl Weyprecht
& The First IPY - II

Nations should cooperate not compete in the Arctic.

Need coordinated expeditions dedicated to scientific research to
achieve not only What and How (knowledge), but also Why
(understanding).

Use same instruments and protocols for an observing period of at
least one year.

Scientific knowledge and understanding depends on comparison of
synchronous observations.

Weyprecht died in 1881, but his ideas were implemented
during IPY 1882-83.
The First IPY, 1882-83
UK/Canada
United States
Date unknown
Germany
Russia
Denmark
Sweden
United States
Netherlands
Austria
12 primary stations
12+ auxiliary
The contents of this slide courtesy of Kevin
Wood, University of Washington, and Jim
Overland, NOAA-PMEL, Seattle.
Norway
Finland
Russia
Results of the First IPY
• Comparison with 30-year
reference period 1968-97.
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• Comparison with first-person
accounts of the Arctic
environment in 1882-83.
• Evidence of a strong North
Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)
signature.
Wood, K. and J. E. Overland. 2006. Climate Lessons from the First International Polar
Year. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 87, 1685-1697.
IPY 1882-83 data and image collection available at: http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/aro/ipy-1
Surface
air temperature
(°C)
Sea level
pressure (mb)
• First analysis of the synchronous
meteorological observations
(SAT, SLP) recorded during the
first IPY.
International Polar Year
The Second International Polar Year: 1932-1933
Magnetic, auroral and meteorological observations at a network of stations in the Arctic and
Antarctic would materially advance present knowledge and understanding (of these
phenomena) not only within polar regions but in general ... This increased knowledge would
be of practical application to problems connected with terrestrial magnetism, marine and
aerial navigation, wireless telegraphy and weather forecasting. IPY2 involved 44 nations,
which established 40 permanent stations in the Arctic during a period of global economic
disruption - the Great Depression.
International Polar Year
The International Geophysical Year (IGY): 1957-1958
From the centre of the Earth to the centre of the Sun, with an emphasis on
the polar regions; Antarctic Treaty, 1961.
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• http://www.nas.edu/history/igy/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IGY
• http://www.cmdl.noaa.gov/obop/spo/igy_history.html
Stamps for
IPY 2007-09
IPY & Our Changing Polar Regions
 The Fourth International Polar Year is not simply the 50th
Anniversary of IGY/IPY3, the 75th Anniversary of IPY2 and
the 125th Anniversary of IPY1.
 It also occurs at a time of significant environmental change in both
polar regions, as exemplified by the changing cryosphere, oceans,
terrestrial ecosystems and climate.
 Hence the vitally important goal of IPY4 – to improve our
knowledge and understanding of the role of the polar regions in the
global climate and environmental system.
- Why are the polar regions changing so dramatically?
- What are the magnitude and consequences of change in the polar
regions? Effects on people, flora, fauna, land, ocean & atmosphere.
- How do the polar regions affect the rest of the World?
- How does the rest of the World affect the polar regions?
IPY Is Not Just a Research Program
In addition to research programs, the U.S. Vision for IPY,
formulated by the US National Committee for IPY (Polar Research
Board, National Academies) makes the following recommendations
with respect to education and outreach:
1. Develop programs in education and outreach that build on the
inherent public interest in the polar regions and provide a broad
lay audience with a deeper understanding of the polar regions;
2. Create opportunities for education, training and outreach for
all age groups that build on existing models, as well as involve
the development of new and innovative approaches; and
3. Develop the next generation of researchers, educators,
professionals and leaders, and include under-represented
and minority groups.
US Vision For IPY: http://books.nap.edu/catalog/11013.html
The IPY Honeycomb
IPY 2007-2009: Summary
Today, over 225 projects have been endorsed by the Joint
Committee, encompassing ~50,000 researchers and 50-60 nations.
 IPY International Programme Office, Cambridge, UK:
http://www.ipy.org
 US Inter-Agency IPY Web site:
http://www.us-ipy.gov/
 Canadian IPY Web site:
http://www.ipy-api.ca/english/