Picture: International Polar Foundation / R. Robert On February 15th, 2009, the Brussels-based International Polar Foundation (IPF) officially inaugurated the new Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Station, the very first Antarctic research station ever designed and built to run entirely on renewable solar and wind energies. The new "zero emission" Belgian research station is the only research platform completed during the fourth International Pola...

A message from the ITASC IPY 0809 expedition February 25 — We are in the middle of the Southern Ocean at 51 degrees south, tracking the Greenwich Meridian still six days out of Cape Town, and unfortunately we cannot join you in Geneva tonight.   We are with you in spirit though and celebrating the IPY tonight with a toast onboard the South African Antarctic research vessel SA Agulhas. On behalf of ITASC expedition leader Ntsikelelo Ntshingila, crew members Erika Blumenfeld, Lotter Kock and myself, and all the scientists and engineers who joined us at the ICEPAC IPY Base during its insta...

Written by Gunn Sissel Jaklin: Credit: G.S. Jaklin, Norwegian Polar Institute February 24

A Capstone of NSF-supported International Polar Year Deployments, AGAP Project May Help Determine What Caused Ice Sheet to Form Flying twin-engine light aircraft the equivalent of several trips around the globe and establishing a network of seismic instruments across an area the size of Texas, a US-led international team of scientists has not only verified the existence of a mountain range that is suspected to have caused the massive East Antarctic Ice Sheet to form, but also has created a detailed picture of the rugged landscape buried under more than four kilometers (2.5 miles) of ice. ...

Video Release: Follow the students and staff of the Students on Ice University from Grise Fiord, Nunavut - the northernmost community in the Americas - to Ushuaia, Argentina - the southernmost city in the world. On February 12, 2009, an international team of 71 students and 18 world-class scientists, environmentalists, researchers and educators began their journey to Antarctica, an initiative led by Canadian adventure educator Geoff Green, the founder of Students on Ice Expeditions (SOI). The ship-based expedition is part of the...

Berlin — February 20th, 2009 — The Federal Minister for Education and Research, Dr Annette Schavan, inaugurated Neumayer Station III today at noontime. The new German research facility thereby starts its scientific operation. It is located 6.5 km south of the old Neumayer Station on the Ekström ice shelf in Dronning Maud Land in the Antarctic. The station serves as a base for scientific observatories as well as logistic centre for inland expeditions and polar aircraft. The Neumayer Station III was erected during seven months in two Antarctic summer seasons by the Alfred Wegener Station for Polar and Marine Research in the Helmholtz Association. It offers accommodation for up to 40 people. Nine people ensure the year-round operation of the station. The construction project of about 40...

February 20, 2009 The multinational ANDRILL (ANtarctic geological DRILLing) program, involving scientists, engineers, students, and educators from Germany, Italy, New Zealand, and the United States, has contributed exciting scientific results during the International Polar Year (IPY). In addition to the science outcomes there has been a focused effort to expand education and public outreach activities. These activities have engaged teachers, students and the general public. ANDRILL successfully implemented two scientific drilling expeditions during the IPY, one in the austral spring and summer of 2006 and one in the austral summer of 2007. These expeditions recovered long sediment and rock cores that preserve the geologic and paleoclimatic record of Antarctica from the ...

Geoff Green, Executive Director of Students on Ice Expeditions writes: We leave tomorrow on our next SOI Antarctic Expedition! This expedition is special for many reasons! It is our first University credit course program. We have 71 students participating from 12 countries. Lots of interesting people, including two young Inuit youth from Canada's northernmost community Grise Fiord. They will be participating in an IPY project during our expedition to compare and contrast the Polar Regions and the impacts of climate change. Thanks to the support of Canada's IPY Federal Program, we are making a one-hour documentary about their journey and their connection to the late Dr. Fritz Koerner. We also have students and staff from across Canada, ...

Geoff Green, Executive Director of Students on Ice Expeditions writes: We leave tomorrow on our next SOI Antarctic Expedition! This expedition is special for many reasons! It is our first University credit course program. We have 71 students participating from 12 countries. Lots of interesting people, including two young Inuit youth from Canada's northernmost community Grise Fiord. They will be participating in an IPY project during our expedition to compare and contrast the Polar Regions and the impacts of climate change. Thanks to the support of Canada's IPY Federal Program, we are making a one-hour documentary about their journey and their connection to the late Dr. Fritz Koerner. We also have students and staff from across Canada, ...

Version Française March 18, 2009 – International Polar Day – “Oceans and Marine Life” “Oceans and Marine Life Polar Day”, an International Polar Year (IPY) webcast event, is taking place live on March 18, 2009, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., originating from the theatre of the Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Quebec. The webcast will include presentations about marine mammal research including satellite tagging of beluga whales, and a live link to researchers on the ice of the Beaufort Sea examining key big-picture science issues about air-surface chemical interactions in the Arctic. This event is one of several IPY education and outreach activities focussing on ocean science in the Polar Regions taking place around...