US-SCAR News

The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) is an international body that brings together scientists from around the world for information sharing and research collaboration. A key mechanism of SCAR’s work is the suite of “Scientific Research Programs” that are established for fixed periods of time to catalyze and organize collaborations around particular topics deemed of critical importance by the scientific community. The current suite of Programs are nearing the end of their designated lifetimes, and a next generation of Programs are now being explored. On May 24th at 1:00-2:30 pm edt, the Polar Research Board will hold a webinar to discuss this program development opportunity and the ways that you can best contribute to this process. Continue Reading

The National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs Arctic Sciences Section is searching for candidates interested in being a science-assistant. The application period opened on April 26 and closes on May 14. For more general information about the range of duties science assistants carry out across the foundation, salary and other information, please see the NSF-wide announcement. Continue Reading

The National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs (OPP) announces a nationwide search for outstanding scientists to fill open Program Director positions to assist in research program management in programmatic areas of Arctic Sciences, Antarctic Sciences, and Antarctic Infrastructure and Logistics. Continue Reading

NSF’s Office of Polar Programs seeks to fill the position of section head in its Antarctic Sciences Section. The application period opened on April 3 and will close on May 15. The section head is a senior member of OPP’s management team and is responsible to the Office Director for the overall planning, management and commitment of budgeted program funds for the section. Continue Reading

The National Science Foundation’s Engineering Directorate, collaboration with the Biological Sciences, Computer and Information Science and Engineering, and Geosciences directorates, has issued a “Dear Colleague” Letter (DCL) to encourage submission of Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) proposals to conduct research related to technologies, models, and methods to better understand dynamic soil processes. It also encourages proposals that include topics relevant to both the DCL and the NSF "Rules of Life" Big Idea and submissions of Research Advanced by Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering (RAISE). Continue Reading

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has funded a workshop to bring scientists and experts together to discuss the new era of Arctic science enabled by the availability of high-resolution commercial satellite imagery. Participants will address questions that help drive new science and satellite collection strategies to report in a long-term science community-driven plan. When: May 21-22, 2018. Where: University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Host: Polar Geospatial Center. Application Deadline: March 30, 2018. Continue Reading

Applications for partial travel support are sought from students, post-doctoral researchers and other scientists at US institutions to attend the XXXV Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) Open Science Conference (OSC) in Switzerland from 19-23 June 2018. The deadline for applications is 1 March 2018. Continue Reading

This week, the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) marks six decades of successful international collaboration. Since its first meeting in The Hague on 3-5 February 1958, SCAR has grown an international network of thousands of scientists who share a common ambition to carry out Antarctic science for the benefit of society. With a membership representing the scientific communities of 43 countries, SCAR is instrumental in initiating, developing and coordinating high quality international scientific research in the Antarctic and the Southern Ocean. Continue Reading

The Office of Polar Programs (OPP), which manages the U.S. Antarctic Program, has issued a policy statement that affirms that the program "is committed to providing a safe and respectful work environment, free of any form of harassment." The document notes that "harassment can take many forms" and provides definitions of behaviors that are deemed unacceptable, including "any unwelcome verbal or physical conduct" under the heading of "harassment." It also separately defines behaviors that constitute "sexual harassment." Continue Reading

Applications for partial travel support are sought from students, post-doctoral researchers and other scientists at US institutions to attend the XXXV Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) Open Science Conference (OSC) in Switzerland from 19-23 June 2018. The deadline for applications is 1 March 2018. Continue Reading

NSF Office of Polar Programs (OPP) is seeking expressions of interest from organizations interested in providing storage, curation, and scientific-management capabilities for ice cores collected in support of scientific research. The goal to ensure secure, long-term, cost-effective archival of and access to ice cores for use by the scientific community. Written responses are due by February 15, 2018. Continue Reading

The International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) program, managed by NSF’s Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE), supports research and research-related activities for U.S. science and engineering students. A new solicitation for IRIS proposals has been issued. The solicitation features three mechanisms; proposers are required to select one of the following tracks to submit their proposal. Each track has a separate deadline for submission, which are listed in the solicitation. Continue Reading

The deadline for submission of abstracts to the POLAR2018 meeting has been extended until 6pm CET on November 12th 2017. This will be the only deadline extension. Continue Reading

NSF has issued a Request for Information (RFI) in an Oct. 6 Dear Colleague Letter to assess the science and engineering community’s needs for mid-scale research infrastructure. The information will be used to develop an infrastructure strategy, in accordance with the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act. The submission deadline is Dec. 8. The RFI focuses on mid-scale research infrastructure projects with an anticipated NSF contribution of between $20 million and $100 million towards construction and/or acquisition. Continue Reading

It is expected that funds will be available to support participation of U.S. Antarctic/Southern Ocean scientists in the SCAR/IASC Open Science Conference in Davos, Switzerland, pending approval from NSF. The theme is Where the Poles Come Together. Funds are intended primarily to support early-career scientists, graduate students and individuals who would increase the diversity of the polar science community. The Abstract Deadline for the OSC is November 1st, 2017, 6:00 p.m. CET – Submit soon! Continue Reading

NSF’s Geosciences and Education and Human Resources directorates have issued a “Dear Colleague Letter” (DCL) to encourage the submission of proposals that “will leverage the extensive [NSF] investment in polar sciences and infrastructure, and [Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics] education research and development, to promote an informed citizenry and the next generation of polar scientists.” Continue Reading

We cordially invite you to participate in the Workshop titled “Antarctic Ecosystem Research following Ice Shelf Collapse and Iceberg Calving Events” to be held at Florida State University, Coastal and Marine Laboratory, on 18 and 19 November 2017. This workshop is being organized by Drs. Jeroen Ingels (Florida State University), Rich Aronson (Florida Institute of Technology), and Craig R. Smith (University of Hawaii at Manoa). Continue Reading

The National Academies' Polar Research Board is pleased to announce a call for abstracts for an AGU session that may be of interest: Understanding Ice Sheet Surface Melt. Invited Speakers: David Bromwich, Ohio State University and Alison Banwell, University of Cambridge Conveners: John Cassano, Sarah Das, Sridhar Anandakrishnan, Lauren Everett. The abstract submission deadline is Wednesday, August 2, 2017. Continue Reading

A concerted international campaign to improve predictions of weather, climate and ice conditions in the Arctic and Antarctic has been launched to minimize the environmental risks and maximize the opportunities associated with rapid climate change in polar regions and to close the current gaps in polar forecasting capacity. The Year of Polar Prediction takes place from mid-2017 to mid-2019 in order to cover an entire year in both the Arctic and Antarctic and involves the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) and a wide array of partners around the globe. Continue Reading

The National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs has issued a new FAQ to address specific questions regarding proposal submittals to its Antarctic Research program solicitation. The deadline for full proposals is 5:00 PM, at the submitter's local time, on May 23, 2017. Continue Reading