Full Proposals for IPY 2007-2008 Activities

Proposed IPY Activity Details

1.0 PROPOSER INFORMATION

(Activity ID No: 94)

1.1 Title of Activity
Development of a Comprehensive Data Products for Arctic Environmental Studies

1.2 Short Form Title of Proposed Activity
A Comprehensive Data Products for Arctic Environmental Studies

1.3 Activity Leader Details
Walter Meier
National Snow and Ice Data Center, University of Colorado
USA

1.4 Lead International Organisation(s) (if applicable)
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1.5 Other Countries involved in the activity
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1.6 Expression of Intent ID #'s brought together in this proposed activity
1033

1.7 Location of Field Activities
Arctic

1.8 Which IPY themes are addressed
1. Current state of the environment
2. Change in the polar regions
3. Polar-global linkages/tele-connections
6. The human dimension in polar regions

1.9 What is the main IPY target addressed by this activity
1. Natural or social science

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2.0 SUMMARY OF THE ACTIVITY

The last decade has been a period of rapid change in the Arctic environment. Several changes have been documented, such as the influx of warm, Atlantic waters, a decrease in the annual mean sea level atmospheric pressure, increased melting of the Greenland ice sheet, continued retreat of Arctic glaciers, and an overall decrease in Northern Hemispheric snow cover. Perhaps the most alarming change however is the significant reduction in sea ice, which has shown an annual decline of about 3% per decade in the annual mean Arctic ice cover since 1979 with even larger decreases have been observed in summer and early autumn. If the trends continue, the Arctic will be ice free in summer by the year 2070. These changes have important implications for ice cover, the surface energy balance (e.g., the ice-albedo feedback) and the addition of freshwater into the Arctic Ocean. Furthermore, many Arctic indigenous communities rely on sea ice for travel and hunting, their main livelihood and basis for their cultural identity. Finally, reductions in sea ice are drastically shrinking marine habitat for ice-dependent seals, polar bears and some seabirds, pushing some species to extinction.
In order to understand the rapid changes underway in the Arctic environment, it is crucial to have spatially and consistent data sets for several cryospheric variables. Satellite observations are still the most efficient means to obtain high spatial and temporal resolution of several geophysical variables that are crucial to understanding environmental change in the Arctic. However, many of the data sets are developed for a specific region. Because of this, previous studies have looked at trends in individual cryospheric variables such as ice extent, melt area or snow cover extent. The lack of hemispheric-wide cryospheric variables on a common grid and at a common spatial and temporal resolution limits the ability to study concurrent changes in several of these variables at the same time. For example, melt onset products exist for the Greenland ice sheet, snow melt over sea ice and for snow melt over land. In order to study the interconnections between timing of melt between these different regimes for example would require a user to first locate each individual data set, transform the data to a common grid and common temporal and spatial resolution. As another example, MODIS surface temperature estimates are available for land, ocean and sea ice, but in order to study the surface temperature trends for the entire Arctic, a user would first have to order each subsetted region individually, and spend a large amount of time transforming the data to common grids and resolution.
In other instances, hemispheric-wide grids of some cryospheric variables have been developed, but they have not been continued past the grant that produced the original data set. For example, the AVHRR Polar Pathfinder Product (APP) provides hemispheric-wide estimates of surface albedo and temperature, but the data set only goes through 2000 and no plans exist to update the time-series beyond 2000 or to extent it into the EOS-era sensors such as MODIS.
Thus, there is a real need for the community to come together and work towards developing spatially, temporally and internally consistent data sets of some of the critical climate variables that cover the entire Arctic region. Critical variables to be included in this effort are the following: surface albedo, surface temperature, melt (onset, freeze-up and extent for snow, sea ice, and ice caps), snow depth, cloud cover, and sea ice area, thickness, and motion.
We propose to combine data sets from the above parameters into a consistent, coherent, complete data set that would be useful to study important climate issues such as the surface energy balance of the Arctic. The relevant parameters will be compiled from existing data, much of which is already archived at the National Snow and Ice Data Center, along with new data acquired during IPY.

2.1 What is the evidence of inter-disciplinarity in this activity?
This activity will primarily focus on satellite data, but it combine data sets from several different satellites, algorithms, instrument teams, and scientists. The project will also include development of new products and refinement of existing products in order to produce the highest quality data record possible. An ultimate goal is to create climate data records of parameters important for Arctic environmental studies. This will require working closely with scientists in several disciplines (terrestrial, oceans, atmospheric) on research projects to develop new and refined data products.

2.2 What will be the significant advances/developments from this activity? What will be the major deliverables? What are the outputs for your peers?
The end result of this project will be a comprehensive data set of a variety of important environmental variables covering the entire Arctic region, which are internally consistent and are produced at common spatial and temporal scales. The variables will include: surface albedo, surface temperature, melt (onset, freeze-up and extent for snow, sea ice, and ice caps), snow depth, cloud cover, and sea ice area, thickness and motion. We will provide a framework (common grid and data standards) that will foster the inclusion of other variables, either from within this project or provided by other PIs through their IPY research. The framework will also allow the continuation of future data acquistions beyond IPY, thus facilitating the ongoing accumulation of consistent timeseries of critical parameters necessary to understand Arctic change.

NSIDC has considerable experience and expertise in data management and is submitting a proposal to be a data and information service center for IPY (M. Parsons, PI). NSIDC already archives several data sets (e.g., AVHRR, MODIS, SSM/I, AMSR-E) that encompass the proposed parameters.
Beyond simply creating a data set and a data framework, there will also be a research component. For example, research to develop sea ice thickness and sea ice and snow albedo parameters has been proposed or will soon be proposed through our national agencies. Research by other PIs that yield new or improved products, either from individual sensors or combinations of several sensors as well as in situ observations will be included in this effort.

2.3 Outline the geographical location(s) for the proposed field work (approximate coordinates will be helpful if possible)

2.4 Define the approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities?

2.5 What major logistic support/facilities will be required for this project?

2.6 How will the required logistics be supplied? Have operators been approached?

2.7 If working in the Arctic regions, has there been contact with local indigenous groups or relevant authorities regarding access?

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3.0 STRUCTURE OF THE ACTIVITY

3.1 Origin of the activity
This activity is the start of a new programme that will outlive IPY

3.2 How will the activity be organised and managed? Describe the proposed management structure and means for coordinating across the cluster
The two PIs have the scientific expertise to develop new and refined data products as well as to work with scientists on development of other innovative approaches to producing cryospheric parameters from satellite. We also have expertise at NSIDC for providing data in common grids and formats that are then useful to a broad user community. Additionally, NSIDC has expertise in data management, user services, and outreach. The two PIs will be the primary managers for bringing in the data sets and converting them to the common data framework (i.e., grid, spatial and temporal resolution). We will reach out to other scientists to acquire data products that they have developed or plan to develop and coordinate with them to obtain the data in the common format.The data will be managed and distributed through the NSIDC's proposed role as a data information services center for IPY.

3.3 Will the activity leave a legacy of infrastructure and if so in what form?
This project will leave a legacy of data products and a data framework for future data access and discovery.

3.4 Will the activity involve nations other than traditional polar nations? How will this be addressed?
We hope to invite any IPY PIs that will produce similar parameters through their research to provide data to us to include in our framework and final data products.

3.5 Will this activity be linked with other IPY core activities? If yes please specify
This activity addresses several IPY core activities. We will produce a data set of high scientific quality that will bring together data from different disciplines and from scientists in several countries and allow for better understanding of environmental Arctic change. The data set will be freely available to the public through NSIDC as soon as the products are finished. Data summaries and ancillary information will be produced to make the data accessible not only for scientists, but also for students, educators and policymakers.

3.6 How will the activity manage its data? Is there a viable plan and which data management organisations/structures will be involved?
The data will be archived and distributed at NSIDC, which has considerable expertise in data management. If NSIDC is selected as a data information services center/portal for IPY, the data produced through this activity will be incorporated into this IPY data management system.

3.7 Data Policy Agreement
Will this activity sign up to the IPY draft Data Policy (see website)
Yes

3.8 How will the activity contribute to developing the next generation of polar scientists, logisticians, etc.?
This activity will provide a legacy and framework for the next generation of polar scientists to more easily access and use data, thus reducing the amount of time searching data, processing data, and converting/formating data to be useful for research studies. This will facilitate more efficient use of the data for their research.

3.9 How will this activity address education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
By providing a comprehensive data set on a consistent grid with consistent spatial and temporal scales, will greatly ease understanding of the data and the interconnections between the different parameters and regions (land, oceans, ice). For example, the proposed data products and data framework could easily be incorporated into a GIS web-based server to overlay and intercompare the different cryospheric variables.

3.10 What are the proposed sources of funding for this activity?
Proposals for some of these activities have been submitted to NASA and NSF and they are currently under review. We plan to submit further proposals in the near future to NASA, NSF, as well as NOAA.

3.11 Additional Comments
This is a new proposal to the IPY. An Expression of Intent was not originally submitted, but it is our understanding that new proposals can be submitted without a prior EoI. We have used an EoI number of 1007 for this submission since that number has not been used.

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4.0 CONSORTIUM INFORMATION

4.1 Contact Details

Lead Contact
Dr Walter Meier
National Snow and Ice Data Center, University of Colorado
CB 449 Boulder, CO
80309
USA

Tel:          -7302
Mobile:   N/A
Fax:         -2959
Email:       walt@nsidc.org

Second Contact
Dr Julienne Stroeve
National Snow and Ice Data Center, University of Colorado
CB 449 Boulder, CO
80309
USA

Tel:          -4378
Mobile:   N/A
Fax:         -4262
Email:      stroeve@kryos.colorado.edu

4.2 Other significant consortium members and their affiliation