Conference Description
The Polar Marine Science GRC is a premier, international scientific conference focused on advancing the frontiers of science through the presentation of cutting-edge and unpublished research, prioritizing time for discussion after each talk and fostering informal interactions among scientists of all career stages. The conference program includes a diverse range of speakers and discussion leaders from institutions and organizations worldwide, concentrating on the latest developments in the field. The conference is five days long and held in a remote location to increase the sense of camaraderie and create scientific communities, with lasting collaborations and friendships. In addition to premier talks, the conference has designated time for poster sessions from individuals of all career stages, and afternoon free time and communal meals allow for informal networking opportunities with leaders in the field.
Sea ice plays a keystone role in polar oceans and atmospheres, particularly in their coupling. Serving as a transmission belt for the transfer of motion from the atmosphere to the ocean, it modulates the exchange of energy, gases, and moisture. It plays a role in the emission of marine aerosols and controls the transfer of various atmospheric depositions to the ocean. Sea ice also constitutes a distinct ecosystem for a wide range of organisms, from microbes to mammals. The presence of sea ice, for several months or even year-round, shapes the dynamics of the surface ocean over time and space, influencing its biogeochemistry and the epipelagic, mesopelagic, and even benthic ecosystems. The positive and negative feedbacks sea ice promotes have the potential to accelerate or slow down climate change and its consequences. During this fourteenth edition of the GRC on Marine Polar Science, we will examine sea ice from every angle and explore the limits of our most fundamental knowledge about this habitat, which is a key player on Earth and has been omnipresent at times in the past, and which fully covers some moons in our solar system. We will focus particularly on i) how sea ice shapes the distinct identity of polar oceans and atmospheres in terms of physics, biogeochemistry, and ecosystems; ii) the physical and chemical characteristics at micro- to decameter scale that make sea ice a unique ecosystem; iii) the biodiversity sea ice supports within itself and in the ocean; iv) the evolutionary mechanisms sea ice can promote; and v) what it tells us about the potential for life on the icy moons of the solar system. All these topics will be addressed while considering the current and future consequences of climate change. Finally, we will discuss the role that sea ice plays in certain human civilizations. Twenty eight years after the very first conference of this series chaired by Stephen F. Ackley on Sea Ice Ecology, we revisit this crucial element of polar seas, enriched by three decades of discoveries. Following the tradition of the conferences in this series, we will also address the ocean and atmosphere, and delve into physics, chemistry, and biology, all while systematically emphasizing the connections with sea ice. The comparison between the Arctic and the Antarctic will allow us to discern, from these two very different oceans, how the presence of sea ice changes their faces, possibly in similar ways.
The topics, speakers, and discussion leaders for the conference sessions are displayed below. The conference chair is currently developing their detailed program, which will include the complete meeting schedule, as well as the talk titles for all speakers. The detailed program will be available by November 9, 2024. Please check back for updates.
Sea Ice as a Habitat on Other Planets
Discussion Leaders
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Jody Deming (University of Washington, United States)
Speakers
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Marc Neveu (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center / University of Maryland, United States)
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Natalie Wolfenbarger (Stanford University, United States)
The Physical Properties that Shape Sea Ice as a Habitat
Discussion Leaders
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Martin Vancoppenolle (LOCEAN/IPSL, CNRS, Paris, France, France)
Speakers
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Bonnie Light (Polar Science Center / Univ. Washington, United States)
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Giulia Castellani (Norwegian Polar Institute, Norway)
Ocean Ice as a Habitat on Earth during Past Ice Ages
Discussion Leaders
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Warwick Vincent (Center for Northern Studies (CEN), Laval University, Canada)
Speakers
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Linda Sohl (Columbia University and NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, United States)
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Anne D. Jungblut (Natural History Museum, United Kingdom)
Adaptations of Microbes to Life in Sea Ice
Discussion Leaders
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Francois Fripiat (Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium)
Speakers
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Karley Campbell (UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Norway)
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Eric Marechal (CNRS / Université Grenoble Alpes, France)
Physical Interactions between Sea Ice and Atmosphere
Discussion Leaders
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Jessie Creamean (Colorado State University, United States)
Speakers
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Matthew Shupe (University of Colorado / NOAA, United States)
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Jun Inoue (National Institute of Polar Research, Japan)
Atmosphere, Sea Ice, Clouds, and Biology
Discussion Leaders
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Christina McCluskey (NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research, United States)
Speakers
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Paul Zieger (Stockholm University, Sweden)
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Julia Schmale (EPFL, Switzerland)
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Ivy Tan (McGill University, Canada)
Ocean Dynamics in the Presence of Sea Ice
Discussion Leaders
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Amelie Meyer (University of Tasmania, Australia)
Speakers
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Benjamin Rabe (Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Germany)
Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics in the Presence of Sea Ice
Discussion Leaders
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Bodil Bluhm (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Norway)
Speakers
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Doreen Kohlbach (Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany)
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Oliver Müller (University of Bergen, Norway)
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Helene Morlon (CNRS ENS, France)
Sea Ice and Evolution
Discussion Leaders
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Chris Bowler (Institut de Biologie, Ecole Normale Superieure, France)
Speakers
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Richard Dorrell (LCQB Sorbonne Université, France)
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Susannah Porter (University of California at Santa Barbara, United States)
The GRC Power Hourâ„¢
Organizers
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Sunshine Menezes (University of Rhode Island, United States)