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NOAA Explores the Poles
The International Polar Year is a scientific program involving dozens of countries working in concert to fully investigate every possible aspect of the Polar Regions - the seas, the land and the ice; the life and peoples who are at home at the Poles, and even the view of the universe from the "ends of the Earth."
NOAA's mission to understand and predict the Earth system is integrally linked to polar science. NOAA has been involved in science and research at the Arctic and Antarctica since the agency was formed in 1970; for many years before that, predecessor agencies that were later combined to create NOAA were exploring, investigating and monitoring the Earth system in both Polar Regions. Throughout the two year period of the International Polar Year (March 2007 to March 2009), NOAA will be involved in new explorations and experiments to better understand the Polar Regions, as well as continuing its work and long-standing, year-round presence in both the Arctic and Antarctic. Other Federal agencies also are participating in IPY. (http://www.us-ipy.gov) The Poles are part of the planet. NOAA and others involved in the IPY will be studying the connections to the Earth system as a whole. From ocean circulation that brings cold water toward the tropics and warm water northward, to glaciers and ice sheets that defray heat into space, the Poles influence on the workings of the entire planet. |
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