A Strategic Vision for NSF Investments in Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research (2015) / Chapter Skim
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4 Foundations for a Robust Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research Program
4 Foundations for a Robust Antarctic and Southern Ocean Research Program
Pages 81-108
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From page 81... ...
CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND LOGISTICAL SUPPORT The infrastructure and logistical support needs that the Committee identified as particularly critical for advancing the priority research topics, and for supporting i nvestigator-driven research across PLR's core programs, are discussed below in the following general categories: • Access to remote field sites especially in West Antarctica, • Data transfer, communication, and information technology needs, • Icebreaker support to ensure access to McMurdo Station and deep-field research, • Support of sustained observations. All of these needs must be considered in the context of the proposed Antarctic Infrastructure Modernization for Science (AIMS)
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From page 82... ...
This all provides a valuable foundation for supporting much of the priority research identified here -- research that requires access to deep-field sites on the continent and in the ocean. In particular, the Changing Ice Initiative will require expanded access to critical regions of the West Antarctic 82
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From page 83... ...
Crucial regions that the Changing Ice Initiative must target are, in priority order, the Amundsen Sea sector (including Thwaites and Pine Island glaciers and the surrounding active regions) , the Ross Ice Shelf, and the grounding lines of the Siple Coast.
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Year-round flights into McMurdo Station, for example, are only possible when accurate weather forecasts are available. Remote field camps in West Antarctica and elsewhere depend on accurate weather forecasts for their success.
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. The British Antarctic Survey has demonstrated that a modern traverse can produce remarkably high-resolution data and insights into the base of the ice sheet and can operate under moderately poor weather conditions.
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South Pole users, which currently have the largest bulk data requirements; (ii) distributed users, 86
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. Increased bandwidth requirements associated with some elements of the Changing Ice Initiative are also anticipated, including for autonomous sensors and for research vessels, and assured 24/7 communications from the ships, field camps, and deployed systems.
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Antarctic research stations and for advancing the priority research identified in this report.
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From page 89... ...
The scope of the work envisioned for the Changing Ice Initiative includes observations aimed primarily at understanding processes, particularly the under lying rivers, mechanisms, and impacts of change. This is clearly within the purview d of NSF -- as opposed to observations aimed primarily at documenting changes and trends in key environmental systems, which fall more clearly under the purview of NASA and NOAA.
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From page 90... ...
Yet the sustained observational efforts that are at the heart of the proposed Changing Ice Initiative could serve as valuable building blocks for the broader goal of a more comprehensive pan-Antarctic observing system. More generally, there are many relatively low-cost steps that can be taken toward this broader goal by etter coordinating, integrating, b and strategically augmenting existing observational and data management efforts being carried out by different research groups, different federal agencies, and different ountries.
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From page 91... ...
monitoring around the continent to constrain ice sheet models; • Expanding use of key ocean observing platforms such as surface and sub surface moorings, profiling floats, and gliders; • Characterizing long-term changes in solar variability and its impacts, for instance, with neutron monitoring stations, magnetic measurements at key sites, auroral observatories, and lower, middle, and upper atmospheric weather stations. BOX 4.3 Southern Ocean Observatories Two Southern Hemisphere observatories have been implemented under the NSF's Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI)
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From page 92... ...
At the McMurdo Dry Valleys LTER this includes, for instance, continued observations of atmospheric temperature, lake levels, soil temperature and moisture, timing and amount of glacial melt–generated stream flow, as well as biomass primary production and biodiversity measurements. And at the Palmer LTER, examples of key observations include sea ice coverage, coastal ocean properties (temperature, salinity, optical depth, circulation patterns, biological productivity)
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From page 93... ...
And in the Southern Ocean, the NOAA Antarctic Marine Living Resources program conducts research on krill, finfishes, krill-dependent predators, and other components of the Antarctic ecosystem -- including annual surveys of key species around the South Shetland Islands. It is logical that NOAA should continue to lead in this work -- given the primary focus on ongoing monitoring and applied ecosystem management goals.
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Recommendation: NSF should prioritize the following actions to advance infra structure and logistical support for the priority research initiatives recommended here -- actions that will likewise benefit many other research activities supported under NSF/PLR's core programs.
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Intra-NSF Coordination Some examples of opportunities for expanding intra-NSF partnerships were discussed Chapter 3 -- for instance, the cosmic microwave background efforts would involve collaboration with the NSF Divisions of Physics and of Astronomical Sciences, and the Antarctic genomics research could involve collaboration with the NSF Directorate for Biological Sciences. Here we highlight in particular the many opportunities that the proposed Changing Ice Initiative presents for joint efforts between PLR and other divisions in NSF's Directorate for Geosciences.
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" Addressing this question hinges in large part on the research recommended in our Changing Ice Initiative. Thus cooperative efforts are critical -- in terms of both direct research support and infrastructure/logistics support.
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While recognizing the very different political context of the U.S. Antarctic Program, it may be worth considering the possible strategic benefits of having an IARPC-like forum for Antarctic and Southern Ocean research.
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The proposed Changing Ice Initiative provides a valuable opportunity for NSF to both benefit from and contribute to observations planned by international programs such as SOOS and CLIVAR. DATA MANAGEMENT Formalized, coordinated, professional data stewardship is necessary to achieve the integrative goals of the USAP and to address the specific recommendations of this report.
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From page 99... ...
As such, it is vital not only to support data as a valuable asset, but also to support the people -- the curators and data scientists who act as mediators and add value to the data. This emphasis on data curation is especially critical in Antarctic and Southern Ocean research because so much of the data are what the National Science Board (NSB, 2005)
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From page 100... ...
There is a long history of international collaboration within the Antarctic research community, for instance, under the Antarctic Treaty and through mechanisms such as SCAR and its Standing Committee on Antarctic Data Management. But data scientists within Antarctic research must also engage in broader-based data-sharing efforts such as the Research Data Alliance and the World Data System, as well as disciplinaryspecific efforts such as the International Oceanographic Data Exchange and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
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From page 101... ...
. This may include specific NSF-funded Antarctic data archives such as the Antarctic Glaciological Data Center, the Polar Rock Repository, and others in A2DC, or disciplinary archives that reach beyond the poles (e.g., the iological B and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office)
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From page 102... ...
Antarctic rogram: P Identify specific archives to manage and preserve data collected in all the core programs; encourage all funded projects to include personnel specifically trained to address data management needs throughout a project's planning and execution; and work to both advance Antarctic-specific data management activities and advance cooperation with broader NSF-wide, national, and international data management initiatives. EDUCATION AND PUBLIC OUTREACH The integration of scientific research and education is essential to NSF's central mission.
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The priority research initiatives recommended in this report may offer excellent opportunities for entraining and mentoring early-career scientists across a large array of disciplines. In times of flat budgets and rising costs for logistical support of field work, there are always temptations to pursue immediate cost-saving measures such as reductions 103
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In addition to these important opportunities for expanding Antarctic science and training in formal K-12, undergraduate, and graduate education, NSF has a unique role to play in supporting the development and dissemination of high-quality education and public outreach materials to a wide array of "informal" educational i nstitutions, including libraries, museums, zoos, aquariums, youth organizations, educational radio programs, parks, nongovernmental organizations and private corporations -- all of which help advance the goals of creating an informed, scientifically literate public, and informed decision makers and policy makers at all levels of government.
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The protection and preservation of Antarctica will depend on how people value and revere this continent as a "place." Societies work hard to protect places they feel connected to, but given its remoteness and inaccessibility, it is difficult for much of the general public to feel a sense of connection to Antarctica. Education and public outreach efforts can provide powerful, engaging experiences that help people feel this sense of connection -- a critical foundation for making the public aware of the essential need for continuing research in Antarctica and its role in broader Earth systems that ultimately affect everyone's lives.
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From page 106... ...
; and • Prioritizing the widespread dissemination and coordination of education and public outreach efforts by Antarctic research teams. For meeting the career development goals discussed above, potential steps include: • Promoting international collaboration and institutional exchange for gradu ate students and postdoctoral scholars in Antarctic science, especially for field research at other countries' national bases; 2 http://thepolarhub.org/.
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From page 107... ...
Although there is an endless reservoir of exciting questions that Antarctic and Southern Ocean research could potentially address, in the face of limited budgets for research and logistical support, the need for prioritization in allo cating resources is real. Here we have recommended a strategic vision for NSF's Antarctic and Southern Ocean research program for the coming decade.
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From page 108... ...
N S F I N V E S T M E N T S I N A N TA R C T I C A N D S O U T H E R N O C E A N R E S E A R C H We hope the ideas raised here, which were richly informed and inspired by the input of researchers across the country, will provide a useful basis for helping NSF leadership and staff make wise planning choices for the coming years. FIGURE 4.3 A schematic illustration of the main components of the Committee's overall strategic vision for NSF's investments in Antarctic and Southern Ocean research.
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