March
1, 2007 The "As a nation, we
have
explored the frontiers of discovery and innovation on and off the ice,"
said NSF Director Arden L. Bement, Jr., in his opening remarks. Our
support of
research in the polar regions entails massive logistical challenges,
and
immense rewards. Today, we are refreshing our commitment to scientific
leadership in the polar regions. And we are pledging our continued
support of
polar research and meeting the challenges that entails." International Polar
Year is a
global research effort to better understand the polar regions and their
climatic effect on the Earth. More than 200 scientific expeditions will
take
place over the next 2 years to study changes to permafrost, the melting
of
polar ice sheets, and marine life in the cold and dark. The research
completed
during IPY will provide a baseline for understanding future
environmental
change. In related polar
news, NSF
announced the launch of a new South Pole telescope, which can detect
cosmic
microwave background radiation, the afterglow of the big bang, with
minimal
interference from water vapor. The agency also announced that on March
19,
2007, four NSF-supported teams will compete in the Society of
Automotive
Engineers Clean Snowmobile Challenge in "We support
investments in
research, education, and tools with excitement, commitment, and the
anticipation of imparting new knowledge to a worldwide audience," said
Bement. "Ultimately, our support of polar research will help engage the
world's citizens in a greater understanding of science, and help us
find
solutions to common global problems." The International
Polar
"Year" will actually extend from March 1, 2007, until March 1, 2009,
to allow researchers to conduct two annual observing cycles in each
polar
region, particularly in the isolated parts that are prohibitively cold
and dark
for six months of the year.
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