Antarctica: An Overview Samantha Hansen, University of Alabama PolarTREC Orientation Meeting February 2012.

Slides:

Advertisements

Similar presentations

Advertisements

MAHLON “CHUCK” KENNICUTT II ANTARCTIC RESEARCH (SCAR)

Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) in the International Polar Year

Antarctic Science Global Relevance Dr Anna E Jones ATCM XXVI Madrid, June 2003 Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research.

ANTARCTIC CLIMATE EVOLUTION (ACE) An international research initiative to study the climate and glacial history of Antarctica through palaeoclimate and.

NOAA in the Antarctic James H. Butler, Director Global Monitoring Division Earth System Research Laboratory National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

With Scott to the Pole BAS at Lake Ellsworth. Lake Ellsworth In December 2012 a team of British scientists and engineers will embark on one of the most.

. Antarctica is a large continent located at the far south of the world. It is larger than Europe. The weather there is very cold. About 98% of Antarctica.

PROTECTING ANTARCTICA PROTECTING ANTARCTICA Dr John Shears Environmental Officer British Antarctic Survey Cambridge.

Bernhard Lettau (interim) Antarctic Sciences Section NSF/Office of Polar Programs Aeronomy and Astrophysics Program Aeronomy, Space Physics, and Astrophysics.

Going to Antarctica March “As the last unspoilt wilderness on earth, Antarctica is currently protected by a treaty prohibiting drilling & mining.

The 7 Continents QVR Session Key: BPBG4W. On Earth we have 7 continents. They are Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South.

National Science Foundation and Science Community Needs for Polar Icebreakers Background material prepared for the August 26, 2005 meeting of the NAS/NRC.

Fun Facts: Continents and Oceans. There are five main oceans in the world: The Arctic, The Atlantic, The Pacific, The Indian, and the Southern. The northern.

World Geography May 20 th, " Ice is the beginning of Antarctica and ice is its end… Ice creates more ice, and ice defines ice. Everything else is.

Subtitle. Important of Antarctica: The natural environment of Antarctica has unique values for us human beings. Antarctica is the only place on Earth.

Antarctica 1: Introduction to a continent. Antarctica  Area = USA + Mexico  Highest continent  Driest Continent  Windiest continent  Coldest.

Vladimir Papitashvili Antarctic Sciences Section NSF/Office of Polar Programs Aeronomy and Astrophysics Program Aeronomy, Space Physics, and Astrophysics.

All About Antarctica.  Earth's southernmost continent.  The coldest, driest, and windiest continent.  Coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth −128.6.

REGIONAL SLIDES. POLAR REGION Arctic Sea Ice Breidamerkurjökull, Iceland Hubbard Glacier, United States Prudhoe Bay, United States Kolka Glacier, Russia.

The World’s Great Scientific Wilderness (Antarctica)

Polar Climate Done by: Bryan Lim (18) Eugene Lee (14)

Where is this place?. SVALBARD The location of Svalbard.

Ecosystems and Biomes - 8

Antarctic Glaciology Julie Palais Program Manager NSF/Office of Polar Programs Antarctic Sciences Section.

Antarctica. Strode’s College Antarctica AS Environmental Science The world’s largest wilderness ecosystem Antarctica is very large 98% is covered by ice.

Antarctic Geology and Geophysics Thomas Wagner Program Manager NSF/Office of Polar Programs Antarctic Science Section.

Introduction to Antarctica and the Antarctic, Why is it so cold? Jean Pennycook penguinscience.com.

An introduction to Antarctica Aim: To understand the location and key physical features of the continent of Antarctica. Write down as many words that you.

Comprehension Strategy 1 Paragraph Shrinking 1.Name the who or what. (The main person, animal, or thing.) 2.Tell the most important thing about the who.

Ice Sheet Origins and Modern Climate By 35 mya, the continents had shifted to their present positions As the ice sheets over Antarctica began forming,

2 nd part. New Zealand 1200 miles SE of Australia Smaller land area than Australia Two main islands N & S island Two separate colliding tectonic plates.

International Polar Year Polar Research Board

Find out more about our colder climates!. The Arctic is northernmost part of the earth, also the Arctic is home to the North pole. Did you know that Arctic.

Extreme Environments Objectives: To be able to define the term ‘extreme environment’ To know where extreme environments are located To know the characteristics.

Subtitle. Antarctica problem: Many problems that are relevant to the Antarctic as well. Since most of the continent never makes it above freezing at any.

Some of the topics to be covered in this course: Describe the methods used by marine scientists List the major components and properties of seawater.

Antarctica. Antarctica - is the world’s fifth largest and southernmost continent and it is mostly covered with ice.

Ocean Model Development (and relation to ice shelves) IPCC summarized top two impacts of physical climate change as (a) air temperature, and (b) sea level.

Chapter 3 Section 3 The Hydrosphere & Biosphere. Objectives Name the three major processes in the water cycle. Describe the properties of ocean water.

Spitzer Space Telescope

Antarctica Satellite view Antarctica is Earth's southernmost continent, underlying the South Pole. It is situated in the Antarctica region of the southern.

 Antarctica is a continent of ice. To the south of this dry continent is the Antarctic Desert. The Antarctic Desert is a desert because there has been.

T.E.A. Teachers Experiencing Antarctica and the Arctic Working to help students better understand the process of real science Sponsored by the National.

Unit 8: Ecology Do Now: 1.What is ecology? 2.Draw a food chain that includes ravens, squirrels, and oak trees (acorns). 3.Now, turn your food chain into.

UNIT 8 Surface processes Biology and Geology 3. Secondary Education TYPES OF GLACIERS.

Glacier formation Mars Taz Choudhury Chem 481. Glaciers… A large, long lasting river of ice that is formed on land and moves in response to gravity. Largest.

Chapter 35 Essential Question: How might global warming affect the environment in the world’s coldest places? Antarctica: Researching Global Warming at.

ANTARCTICA By : Aditya K and Matthias Z. SCOTT BASE Map of Antarctica.

Antarctica Should Antarctica be protected from development?

Strategies to manage human activity in the tundra 3.

Where is it. Where is it? Antarctica is the southern most region of the globe. An ice sheet covers ninety-eight percent of the continent. A map of Antarctica.

ANTARCTICA the last “no-man’s land”. ANTARCTICA What is the status quo of political geography in Antarctica? What issues might require international cooperation?

Somerset School’s Science Department – January 2016 Five thousand polar bear cubs were born around New Year's Day this year. Polar bears time the births.

Physical and Human Geography

Warm Up: Label all the continents and oceans on your maps. South Southern Ocean North What is this body of water? Gulf of Mexico Caribbean Sea.

The Antarctica Prepared By: Arishna V. Gandhi Std. 7-A

9/9/16 WHAT IS EARTH SCIENCE?

Antarctica Satellite view.

Warm Up What can you tell about the physical geography of Antarctica based off the elevation map?

10 Differences between the poles

Vocabulary words and definitions

Antarctica presented by Mrs. Hess

What is Oceanography?.

Welcome to Earth Science

Presentation transcript:

Antarctica: An Overview Samantha Hansen, University of Alabama PolarTREC Orientation Meeting February 2012

Antarctica Fun Facts - 5 th largest land mass; 1.5 times the size of the U.S. - Coldest, windiest, driest, highest, quietest, most remote, and least understood continent on Earth - World’s largest desert - Record cold: -129°F % covered by ice, making direct observations very difficult

Who owns Antarctica? Technically, no one, but territory claims have been made.

Antarctic Treaty Signed by 12 nations in 1959; 42 nations included now. Antarctica is to be used for peaceful purposes only; no military activities of any kind are permitted. Scientific program plans, personnel, observations, and results shall be freely exchanged. All land and ice shelves south of latitude 60°S are covered.

U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) Supports Antarctic Treaty by fostering cooperative research; about 3,000 Americans involved each year Research Goals: To understand the region and its ecosystem To understand its effects on and responses to global processes, such as climate To use the region as a platform to study the upper atmosphere and space Disciplines: astronomy, atmospheric science, biology, earth science, environmental science, geology, glaciology, marine biology, oceanography, geophysics

Why Antarctica? The research being done in Antarctica cannot be done anywhere else! – Arguably the most undisturbed region on the planet – Unique environment make it the ideal location for many studies A few examples… = ?

Astrophysical Observatory Measuring radiation arriving to Earth from space; cold/dry air and clear skies are crucial Infrared and millimeter wavelength telescope Study how planets, stars, and galaxies are born South Pole telescope with Milky Way behind; Hrubes (2010) Aurora australis over South Pole station; Cullis (2009)

Pine Island Glacier (PIG) What is driving ice loss and causing glacier to flow rapidly into the sea? Impact on sea-level rise Properties of bedrock beneath ice (impact on how they move) Landsat Image (2001) Bindschadler (2011)

Seal and Penguin Science Investigating the diet, behavior, breeding, etc. of Antarctic critters Impacts on their ecosystem Pictures near McMurdo; Hansen (2009)

Drilling into Lake Ellsworth British, Russian, and American scientists trying to sample lake that has been isolated for at least 125,000 years Buried beneath 2 miles of ice Thought to be extreme habitat for microbial life; important record of ice sheet and climate history in lake sediments Images from the Subglacial Lake Ellsworth Consortium

Antarctica’s Gamburtsev Province (AGAP) Investigating the Gamburtsev Mtns. – How did they form? – Role in E. Antarctic ice sheet formation? GAMSEIS and GAMBIT (seismic and aerogeophysics) Deretsky (2009) GAMSEIS field pictures; Hansen (2010)

Collaboration with K-12 Educators As a researcher, it is fun and exciting to share your work with the education community Readily lends itself to K-12 education and outreach – inspire the next generation of polar scientists Australian Antarctic Division

Antarctic Education and the “Bigger Picture” Getting students interested in math, science, and technology requires showing them things that are new, different, and exciting. Basically EVERYTHING in Antarctica can be described this way! Get them thinking about what they might do in the future

Thanks for your attention. Any comments/questions?