About 60 people attended the Polar Week public lecture at the Centenary Lecture Theatre, University of Tasmania Hobart Australia. The lecture was coordinated by the University of Tasmania and the Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre (ACE CRC) to mark International Polar Week. Dr Tony Press, CEO of ACE CRC, opened the event and outlined the achievements of the International Polar Year, in particular recognising the local contribution of Dr Ian Allison from ACE CRC. He then introduced the speaker, Associate Professor Tom Trull. The lecture highlighted the important role of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean regions in influencing the world’s climate. Assoc. Prof Trull profiled the research activity of the ACE CRC and the Centre’s plans for the next 5-years. He highlighted the importance of polar research in understanding future climate change and that the ACE CRC would be focussed on improving our understanding of :
· How the Southern Ocean is changing and what the implications are for Australian and global climate, now and in the future?
· How will the sea ice and the Antarctic ice sheet will respond to changes in climate?
· Whether the Southern Ocean continue to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and how rapidly will this increase the acidity of the ocean?
· What will be the impacts of Southern Ocean and sea ice changes on Antarctic ecosystems and fisheries?
The lecture attracted considerable interest from the local community and from the research fraternity. There were audience questions throughout the presentation.