Return to Main Land and Life Pages Courtesy of the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research Program The McMurdo Dry Valleys are the coldest and driest desert system in the world and represent 2% of the Antarctic Continent that is free of ice. This polar desert is a configuration of barren ground, alpine, terminal, and piedmont glaciers, and ephemeral streams. The high winds and bitt...

Return to Main Land and Life Pages Courtesy of the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research Program The McMurdo Dry Valleys are the coldest and driest desert system in the world and represent 2% of the Antarctic Continent that is free of ice. This polar desert is a configuration of barren ground, alpine, terminal, and piedmont glaciers, and ephemeral streams. The high winds and bitt...

Return to Main Land and Life page Here is a list of IPY projects studying Land and Life. In addition, there are several organisations that have further information and activities. Land: Glacier and Permafrost Hazards in Mountains (GAPHAZ) Antarctic Permafrost and ...

Published quarterly in March, June, September and December, the multiple writing award winning journal "The Fan Hitch", now in its tenth year, has been enjoyed not only by Inuit Dog enthusiasts, but also has been appreciated as a valuable resource for information as well as a connection to other people, by scientists, historical researchers (including IPY contributors), tourism businesses, filmmakers, authors, veterinarians, universities, government agencies and NGOs. In addition to being principally a free "e-zine", "The Fan Hitch" is also available in paper form, which is imaged and distributed by the IPL students of the Ulluriaq School, Kangiqsualujjuaq, Nunavik. As part of our mission to help restore and pr...

"Learning From the Polar Past," the second issue of the Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears online magazine, provides content knowledge, lesson plans, and resources about fossils, polar dinosaurs, geologic time, paleontology, and archaeology. Students learn to examine evidence and make inferences in science activities. Through reading and writing, students practice making inferences, use context clues to define vocabulary, and construct evidence-based claims. The second issue includes compelling images from both the Arctic and Antarctica as well as engaging stories and high-quality content. Some of the issue's highlights are: ...

Published quarterly in March, June, September and December, the multiple writing award winning journal "The Fan Hitch", now in its tenth year, has been enjoyed not only by Inuit Dog enthusiasts, but also has been appreciated as a valuable resource for information as well as a connection to other people, by scientists, historical researchers (including IPY contributors), tourism businesses, filmmakers, authors, veterinarians, universities, government agencies and NGOs. In addition to being principally a free "e-zine", "The Fan Hitch" is also available in paper form, which is imaged and distributed by the IPL students of the Ulluriaq School, Kangiqsualujjuaq, Nunavik. As part of our mission to help restore and pr...

Drawing South is a website documenting the visual communication of artist Nicholas Hutcheson from on board the ship Aurora Australis as it visits 3 of the Australian bases on one of the annual re-supply trips. Nicholas will be heading to the Antarctic as part of the Australian Governments Antarctic Arts fellowship progam. Each week of the 8 week voyage, a new set of drawings will be uploaded featuring the weather, interviews with people working in the Antartic, answers to viewers questions and the daily observations of things around him. Part of this project is working with school students who are following the journey, asking him questions and learning about Ant...

Drawing South is a website documenting the visual communication of artist Nicholas Hutcheson from on board the ship Aurora Australis as it visits 3 of the Australian bases on one of the annual re-supply trips. Nicholas will be heading to the Antarctic as part of the Australian Governments Antarctic Arts fellowship progam. Each week of the 8 week voyage, a new set of drawings will be uploaded featuring the weather, interviews with people working in the Antartic, answers to viewers questions and the daily observations of things around him. Part of this project is working with school students who are following the journey, asking him questions and learning about Ant...

The Last Polar Bear records and celebrates one of nature’s most majestic creatures — the polar bear — and examines how global warming is affecting the fragile, complex Arctic environment. Polar bears use sea ice to move about, find mates and hunt for seals. As temperatures warm, the loss of the pack ice directly impacts their ability to survive. Scientists agree that Arctic ice is disappearing at an alarming rate. Last summer, sea ice levels plummeted to their lowest since satellite measurements began in 1979. And a new scientific study by the U.S. Geological Survey, released last fall, predicts that two-thirds of the world’s polar bears, including Alaska’s entire population, may disapp...

January 30, 2008: Today the Tangaroa, New-Zealand's Antarctic research vessel, departed from Wellington and is heading due south to undertake the New Zealand IPY-CAML project. New Zealand is conducting a major biological survey of the Ross Sea, in the Antarctic, as part of the Census of Antarctic Marine Life (CAML) and International Polar Year (IPY). Forty four people including 24 scientists and 18 crew will take part in an eight-week voyage aboard RV Tangaroa from January 30th to mid March 2008. The data collected will provide baseline information from the Southern Ocean and Ross Sea environment that can be used to help monitor the effects of climate change in the Ross Sea region. With a biodiversity focus, the voyage will collect samples of...