Department of Commerce - NSF · 87 Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA performs research in the high-latitude regions of the planet in connection

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Department of CommerceNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

NOAA performs research in the high-latitude regions of the planet inconnection with its environmental assessment, monitoring, and predictionresponsibilities. Research programs focus on scientific questions thataddress the Arctic environment and its relation to the global environment.

Office of Oceanic andAtmospheric Research

In the fall of 2005, NOAA’s Arctic ResearchOffice moved into NOAA’s Climate Program Officeand was renamed the Arctic Research Program. Atthis transition the program’s goals were redefinedto the following:

• To build and maintain a suite of Arctic climateobserving networks (ocean, sea ice, atmo-sphere) in association with international part-ners;

• To support continuing analysis of Arctic cli-mate data from program and other sources;

• To provide data and analyses to operationalcenters, climate assessment activities, and theresearch community; and

• To participate in public education and out-reach.

Observing SystemsThe developing Arctic Observing networks

include the development of atmospheric, oceanand ice systems.

The Arctic Climate Atmospheric ObservatoryNetwork is planned to consist of three to fiveobservatories around the rim of the Arctic Ocean.The initial observatory is the NOAA Global Moni-toring Division Barrow Observatory and theDepartment of Energy’s Atmospheric RadiationMeasuring Program Observatory. These co-locatedfacilities have been in operation for 33 and 10 years,respectively, and together they provide the modelfor observatories planned for other portions of theArctic. The second observatory in the network isdistributed between Alert and Eureka, Canada, onEllesmere Island. NOAA and Canadian partnershave deployed instruments to the observatorywith the goal of having the full observatory opera-tional by the end of 2008. The third link in the

planned network will be located at Tiksi in SiberianRussia. NOAA and NSF will be U.S. co-sponsorsof this observatory. An implementation plan forthe Tiksi observatory is under development, andinitial measurements should start in the fall of2006. NOAA will coordinate with an already estab-lished atmospheric observation program in NyÅlesund, Norway, and the Greenland SummitStation to complete the circumpolar network. Thegoal of the observatory network is to provide longtime-series data on clouds and cloud properties,aerosols, radiation, and trace gases. The data willsupport research on atmospheric climate process-es, provide calibration and validation data for cur-rent and planned satellite sensors, and providedata to develop and test global and regional cli-mate models with a goal of answering questionsof attribution. The observatories will be sites atwhich shorter-term research projects can be con-ducted by scientists from the broad community.

NOAA has developed plans to support long-

Funding (thousands)FY 04 FY 05

Cloud Radiation 10 10Atmos. Trace Constituents 400 425Fisheries Assess./Manage. 17,000 17,500Marine Mammal Assessment 6,675 7,325Ocean Assessment 10 50Stratospheric Ozone 250 250Data Management 331 340Remote Sensing 345 435Aircraft/Vessels 950 1,100Weather Research 25 50Western Arctic/Bering Sea Ecosys. 2,100 2,100Barrow Observatory 600 600Ocean Exploration 355 2,300Tsunami Warning/Env. Obs. 250 250Arctic Research Initiative 1,650 1,060Ocean Observations/Arctic Fluxes 360 360Arctic Climate Research (SEARCH) 2,000 1,960Undersea Research 2,530 0Total 35,841 36,115

This document has been archived.

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term ocean and sea ice observations in the Arcticas a subcomponent of the NOAA IntegratedOcean Observing System. There are three ele-ments to the Arctic component: ice-tetheredbuoys in the perennial Arctic sea ice, oceano-graphic moorings along the shelf and slope and inthe deep basins, and ship-based observations.

A small network of autonomous ice mass-balance buoys (IMBs) has been continuallydeployed since late summer 2003. These buoys areunique in their ability to determine whether changesin the thickness of the ice cover occur at the topor bottom of the ice cover and hence provideinsight on the driving forces behind the change.They can be used in validating and calibratingother ice-based and remote ice thickness measure-ment systems and numerical forecast models ofthe ice cover. The network of IMBs has been aug-mented by the establishment of a moored, ice-profiling sonar on the Chukchi Plateau in the sum-mer of 2003. This region of the Arctic Ocean hasexperienced record extremes in ice retreat overthe past few summers. Data from this mooring,designed to monitor ice thickness, have been suc-cessfully recovered in 2004 and 2005, and the anal-ysis of the 2004 data will be available in 2006.

The International Arctic Buoy Program (IABP)provides a denser network of simpler buoys thatmeasure only surface air temperature and pressureand location. All of these buoys are coupled to theGlobal Telecommunication System and supportoperational weather forecasting, ice trajectory andforecasting, and the creation of climate data setsfrom throughout the Arctic Ocean perennial icezone.

A mooring deployed in the western BeringStrait in the summer of 2004 has been successfullyrecovered, and three new more-capable mooringswere deployed for recovery in the summer of 2006.The data from the recovered mooring are the firstobtained in this Russian area since the early1990s. It is essential for blending with data fromthe U.S. side for computing net flow through theBering Strait, which should be a critical indicatorof global ocean circulation. Flow through the straitalso is a determining factor in controlling ecosys-tem function in the Chukchi Sea.

The summer of 2005 marked the inauguration ofa new NOAA-sponsored mooring program beingconducted by the International Arctic ResearchCenter (IARC) at the University of Alaska Fair-banks. This program, the Nansen–AmundsenBasin Observing System (NABOS), has deployedmoorings along the shelf edge of the Russian Fed-

eration and will provide new data on internal Arc-tic Ocean circulation.

NOAA conducted its first Arctic Ocean researchcruise with the Russian Academy of Sciences inthe summer of 2004 through what has becomeknown as the Russian–American Long-term Cen-sus of the Arctic (RUSALCA) project. One objec-tive of RUSALCA is to document the changes inthe physical state of the northern Bering andChukchi Seas, regions that have experienced sig-nificant change over the past few decades andthat models predict will experience even greaterchange in the decades ahead. General ocean andatmospheric warming and loss of sea ice shouldbe accompanied by changes in water columnstructure and possible changes in circulation andflux through the Bering Strait, which may haveimplications for the entire Arctic Ocean. A secondobjective of RUSALCA is to observe changes inecosystem structure and productivity that resultfrom the physical changes and to identify a set ofecosystem indicators that might be applied through-out the Arctic marine region. Marine ecosystemalterations will affect Native subsistence harvestsand possibly commercial fisheries and protectedmammals and birds. RUSALCA was co-funded byNOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration. Planningis underway for a major international researchexpedition during the International Polar Year. Thecurrent strategy is to conduct a multidisciplinarycruise every four years, with mooring and physicaloceanographic-based expeditions conductedannually.

Data AnalysisDuring 2004 and 2005, work continued to

define an Arctic Climate Change Detection Proto-col and to gather and analyze historical and cur-rent data from diverse sources to evaluate variabil-ity and change in the Arctic climate. One approachhas been to gather different types of data fromthroughout the Arctic region and analyze spatialand temporal relationships. This effort has identi-fied that widespread ocean, ice, and terrestrialchanges are continuing their multi-decade trendeven while the presumed driver, atmospheric circu-lation, is experiencing significant changes in trend.This work has been presented through a website(www.arctic.noaa.gov/detect) and through scien-tific publications. Another approach has been togather historical data not yet in the digital archivesto provide added context for more recent observa-tions. During 2005, a project was initiated to “res-cue” early 20th century radiosonde data from the

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Russian Arctic. These data will be very useful inhelping to quantify the period of Arctic warming inthe early 20th century and will allow better com-parison of it to the current warming period. Thedata rescue project should be completed in 2006.

The Arctic Climate Change Detection projectwill focus more explicitly on the northern Beringand Chukchi Seas during FY 2006. It will obtain allof the data collected by the program in this regionsince 2003 and as much relevant external data aspossible. The data will be assembled in a formsuitable for use in a GIS framework.

In 2005 the Arctic Research Office (now Pro-gram) contributed to the funding of a State of theArctic (SOA) Report. Experts from several coun-tries are preparing a report summarizing the cur-rent physical state of the Arctic that will be sub-mitted for peer-reviewed publication during 2006.This will be an update to the Arctic Climate ImpactAssessment. If well received, the SOA report maybe produced every two to three years and maygrow to include biological and other aspects ofthe Arctic environment. A workshop will be heldduring 2006 to explore the state of the Arctic car-bon cycle and discuss how it might be expected tochange under a global warming scenario. Resultsof the workshop will guide future program activi-ties related to carbon in the Arctic.

OutreachNOAA’s Arctic Theme Page (www.arctic.noaa.

gov) is a mechanism for describing NOAA’s Arcticprograms and for providing a scientific resource tothe public.

In 2003–2005, NOAA’s Arctic Research Officecontributed funding to the Smithsonian’s NationalMuseum of Natural History to create a specialexhibit called Arctic: A Friend Acting Strangely.This exhibit has been developed in collaborationwith scientists at NASA, NSF, and the Departmentof Energy. The exhibition is an outreach contribu-tion to the Study of Environmental Arctic Change(SEARCH) interdisciplinary research programbeing conducted by eight Federal agencies.

Office of Ocean ExplorationIn 2005 the Office of Ocean Exploration spon-

sored the Hidden Ocean 2005 Expedition. Theexpedition focused on assessing the diversity oflife and the environment in all three major realmsof the Arctic—the sea ice, the water column, andthe seafloor. For one month the U.S. Coast GuardCutter Healy conducted round-the-clock science

operations. The team visited 14 stations coveringpoorly known areas of the southwestern CanadaBasin, Northwind Ridge, Northwest Abyssal Plain,and Chukchi Plateau. Core science operationsincluded measuring sea ice properties, primaryproductivity, and pelagic (water column) andbenthic (seafloor) community composition.

The sea ice team conducted research on andunderneath the ice. Ice corers were used to collectsamples of ice that are being analyzed to estimatethe diversity and quantity of sea ice algae andfauna to search for rare and unidentified micro-scopic creatures living in the ice. The understand-ing of the sea ice realm was enhanced through thecollection of temperature, salinity, fluorescence,and light profiles under the ice from all 14 stations.These measurements help to define the growingconditions for tiny, single-celled plants known asphytoplankton, which provide food for othermicroscopic animals. The growth rates of sea icealgae and phytoplankton were studied using pri-mary production measurements conducted in thewater column under the ice. Phytoplankton formthe base of the Arctic marine food web, so under-standing its growth is important to understandingthe amount of food available to creatures living atdifferent depths under the ice.

Ice divers collected video and still images ofamphipods (small creatures living on the under-side of the sea ice) and Arctic cod under the drift-ing pack ice. Two of the amphipod species studiedwere previously unknown to inhabit the region;one was known only as a pelagic species, and theother had been known only in association withcoastal waters.

Built by Deep Sea Systems, Inc., the GlobalExplorer remotely operated vehicle (ROV),equipped with three standard cameras and onehigh-definition camera, provided scientists with aneye into the sea. During the expedition, the ROVdescended as deep as 2,900 m, collecting samplesof creatures in the water column and on the sea-floor.

The pelagic team focused on identifyingunknown or poorly known gelatinous zooplanktonand the organisms they feed on in the CanadaBasin. Tools including live nets, a multi-net, andthe Global Explorer captured live specimens ofzooplankton living from the surface to 2,900 m.Numerous first records of many of these speciesin the Amerasian Arctic were recorded, 6–10 ofwhich represent undescribed “new” species.

The benthic team utilized a variety of tools toview and sample the seafloor. The ROV performed

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eight benthic dives ranging from 880 to 2250 mdeep, collecting high-definition video footage andsamples of flora and fauna living on the seafloor. Aphoto platform was constructed and used for theexpedition to conduct quantitative image samplingof the seafloor, and box cores were deployed tocollect cookie-cutter-like samples of the sea bot-tom and the creatures living within it. Among thespecies viewed and collected were at least sevenpolychaete (marine bristle worm) species markingsignificant range extensions in geographical areaand/or depth, at least three suspected new speciesof polychaetes, and many more samples and spe-cies in need of further analysis before conclusionscan be made.

The creatures living in the water were not theonly subjects studied; a science team on boardfocused on characterizing the environments inwhich the creatures live through instrumentdeployments as well as in situ experiments. Inaddition to a winch-operated CTD (conductivity,temperature, and depth sensor), one CTD wasattached to the ROV and collected water masscharacteristics to provide an oceanographic con-text for each sampling site; this information can beused to find where the water at each site originatedand help explain the observed species composi-tion and nutrient regime in the Canada Basin.Deep CTD water samples were also collectedand analyzed for nutrients and plant pigments toassess the environment and food available for ani-mals living in the deep sea.

This expedition represents the first comprehen-sive, multidisciplinary effort towards understand-ing and characterizing the diversity of life in allrealms of the ice-covered Arctic Ocean.

Earth System Research LaboratoryGlobal Monitoring Division

In October 2005 the former Climate Monitoringand Diagnostics Laboratory (CMDL) of NOAAwas reorganized into the Global Monitoring Divi-sion (GMD) of the newly created Earth SystemResearch Laboratory (ESRL) of NOAA/. Includedin the new GMD division is the former Surface Ra-diation Research Branch (SRRB) of the NOAA AirResources Laboratory. The total staff in GMDnumbers 106, inclusive of Federal, joint institute,and contract employees. The GMD conducts sus-tained observations and research related to sourceand sink strengths, trends, and global distribu-tions of atmospheric constituents that are capableof forcing change in the climate of earth by modi-

fying the atmospheric radiative environment,those constituents that may cause depletion ofthe global ozone layer, and those that affect base-line air quality. GMD accomplishes this missionprimarily through long-term measurements of keyatmospheric species at 105 sites spanning theglobe, including five well-instrumented andmanned Atmospheric Baseline Observatories atBarrow, Alaska; Trinidad Head, California; MaunaLoa, Hawaii; American Samoa; and South Pole,Antarctica. A sixth station, at Summit, Greenland,is being developed and has been manned by GMDstaff six months per year for the past two years.Depending upon FY 2007 funding, the station maybe manned year-round by a GMD staff memberfrom 2007 onward.

In the Arctic, GMD measurements include car-bon dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane, nitrousoxide, surface and stratospheric ozone, haloge-nated compounds including chlorofluorocarbon(CFC) replacements, hydrocarbons, sulfur gases,aerosols, solar and terrestrial UV, and broadbandand infrared radiation. In addition, field campaignsin key regions, utilizing an array of platformsincluding aircraft, balloons, ocean vessels, andtowers, complement the long-term measurements.The GMD data are used to assess climate forcing,ozone depletion, and baseline air quality; to developand test diagnostic and predictive models; and tokeep the public, policy makers, and scientistsabreast of the current state of our chemical andradiative atmosphere.

Arctic Baseline Atmospheric ObservatoryOperations. GMD has operated the AtmosphericBaseline Observatory at Barrow, Alaska (BRW),manned by a staff of two, for 32 years. In additionto 28 core atmospheric baseline measurementprojects, BRW supports 20 cooperative researchprojects, with a majority coming from universitiesor agencies in Alaska. As part of the Barrow ArcticScience Consortium (BASC) facilities upgrade,GMD is in the design phase of a new observatorybuilding at the present BRW site. This would triplethe size of the 800-square-foot facility, which hasreached operational capacity. This expansion ofthe NOAA BRW facility has not yet been funded.New housing for the Barrow staff is on the drawingboard, and construction may begin in 2008. Initialfunds for the housing construction are in hand.

At Summit, Greenland, an NSF-supportedresearch facility, GMD initiated year-round carboncycle air flask sampling and in situ surface ozoneand black carbon measurements in the spring of2003, conducted firn air measurements in June

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2004 and June 2005 and surface ozone measure-ments from June 2000 to July 2003, and undertookcontinuous surface ozone measurements fromAugust 2004 onward. Weekly balloon-borneozonesondes were added in November 2004, andstratospheric water vapor sondes began operationin November 2005. A complete, high-quality sur-face meteorology system was added at Summit byGMD in August 2005. In addition to manning thefacility with NOAA staff year-round, plans includeadding a suite of instrumentation to measure awide range of aerosol parameters, a solar radiationBaseline Surface Radiation Network program, andcontinuous trace gas measurements (up to 15 spe-cies).

GMD collects weekly pairs of discrete air sam-ples from a 65-site global carbon cycle glass flasksampling network that includes Arctic or near-Arctic sites at Barrow, Cold Bay, and Shemya,Alaska; Ocean Station “M” in the Norwegian Sea;Heimaey, Iceland; Alert, Canada; Pallas, Finland;and Ny Alesund, Spitzbergen, in addition to thesampling at Summit, Greenland. Vertical profiles ofa large suite of trace gases (including halocarbonspecies) are obtained over Poker Flats, Alaska, ona biweekly basis with an aircraft flying profiles to8,000 m above sea level. Gases are also collectedin high-pressure metal flasks at a much smallernumber of sites for measurement of chlorofluoro-carbon gases.

Surface Ozone Observations in the Arctic.Sites operated by GMD make surface ozoneobservations in three distinct regimes within theArctic. Barrow represents an Arctic Ocean envi-ronment with seasonal ice cover. Summit, Green-land, is a high-altitude site on the permanent icecap, while Westman Islands, Iceland, is represen-tative of a high-latitude site on the permanentlyice-free North Atlantic. At Barrow in the spring,there are numerous episodes of ozone depletionthat may persist for several days and often com-pletely remove ozone from the lower atmosphericboundary layer. At Summit and Westman Islands,on the other hand, events of this type are notseen. This demonstrates that both the ocean envi-ronment and sea ice formation are critical ingredi-ents in the ozone depletion process. Halogencompounds (primarily those containing bromine)processed on the Arctic ice pack, in the presenceof increasing spring sunlight, are the primary cata-lysts for ozone loss in what appears to be a natu-ral process. At Summit, long-range transport offorest fire smoke from Alaska and Russia is regu-larly measured, and occasionally large-scale air

pollution from Europe is observed at WestmanIslands and Summit. These transport events bringelevated ozone levels to the Arctic.

Springtime Incursions and Impacts of AsianDust and Air Pollution in the Arctic. During thespring of each year, frontal systems in Asia gener-ate dust storms that push dust and air pollutioneastward across the Pacific, and some of that dustreaches the Alaskan Arctic. GMD measurementsshow that when Asian dust is present in the Arcticatmosphere over the BRW observatory, the sur-face tends to cool, but to a lesser extent than atlower latitudes that are free of snow. Even thoughthese Arctic dust events are episodic and occurmainly in late winter through spring, their effectis not insignificant when they are present. Shouldthe Arctic atmosphere become more turbid in thefuture, projections of enhanced warming in theArctic due to greenhouse gases could be episodi-cally negated because of this dust-aerosol-induced negative feedback. On the other hand,should the dust contain high concentrations ofcarbonaceous particles that directly absorb sun-light, additional atmospheric heating could occur.

In the past, the focus of aerosol research atBarrow has been on Arctic Haze, which is air pol-lution transported from Eurasia to BRW eachspring. Spectral aerosol optical depth measure-ments are used to differentiate dust from haze, asdust contains much larger particles and is often ofhigher optical depth. Because polar atmospheresare generally very clean, even small increases inaerosol concentrations can perturb the radiometricstructure of the atmosphere and thus the surfaceenergy balance.

Trace Gas Emissions Measured along theTrans-Siberian Railway. To study the trace gasemissions of a large sector of both Europe andAsia, a consortium of Russian, German, and U.S.scientists have instrumented a Russian railway carwith a wide range of atmospheric measurementinstrumentation, coupled the observatory carriageto regularly scheduled passenger trains, and con-ducted 17,000-km traverses from Moscow to Kha-barovsk and back. These 13-day Trans-SiberianObservations into the Chemistry of the Atmo-sphere (TROICA) missions have been conductedseven times since 1995. This railway platform isideal for atmospheric measurements because therailway is electrified between Moscow and Kha-barovsk, minimizing the potential contaminationof measurements by the train itself.

Russia ended the production of chlorofluoro-carbons (CFCs, used as refrigerants), chlorinated

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solvents (methyl chloroform, CH3CCl3 and carbontetrachloride, CCl4), and halons (used as fire extin-guishing agents) at the end of 2000 as a result ofthe Montreal Protocol, but emissions persist frombanks of these chemicals (in existing refrigerators,air-conditioners, etc.). Measurements onboard thecarriage include oxides of nitrogen (NOx), ozone,aerosols, radon-222, CO, CH4, CO2, and meteoro-logical parameters including vertical temperatureprofiles. In addition, continuous measurements areconducted on nitrous oxide (N2O), sulfur hexafluo-ride (SF6), CFC-12 (CCl2F2), halon-1211 (CBrClF2),CFC-11 (CCl3F), CFC-113 (CClF2-CCl2F), chloro-form (CHCl3), CH3CCl3, CCl4, hydrogen (H2), meth-ane (CH4), and CO. One goal of this program isto measure the expected reduction of the ozone-depleting substances between 2001 and 2004 andin 2007 when the next TROICA mission will occur.

Arctic Water Vapor Measurements, 2004–2005. Water vapor observations at Sodankylä,Finland, and Ny Ålesund, Spitzbergen, were con-tinued in cooperation with the Finnish Meteoro-logical Institute (FMI) and the Alfred WegenerInstitut, with support from the European LAPBIATand SCOUT projects. At Sodankylä these mea-surements continue the stratospheric water vapordata set, which was started in 1996. In January andFebruary 2004, the intensive campaign LAUTLOS-WAVAP (Lapbiat Upper Troposphere, LowerStratosphere Water Vapor Project) took place atSodankylä, which compared a number of in situand remote sensing instruments capable of mea-suring tropospheric and stratospheric water vapor.A total of 33 payloads were launched during thisproject, with 14 carrying instruments capable of

measuring stratospheric water vapor, namely thefluorescent Lyman Alpha stratospheric hygrom-eter of the Central Aerological Observatory, Mos-cow, the NOAA/GMD frost-point hygrometer, andthe University of Colorado cryogenic frost-pointhygrometer. In addition, these payloads carriedozone sondes.

The comparison of these instruments showedexcellent agreement in the stratosphere and uppertroposphere and described and quantified severalinstrumental artifacts that had not been identifiedpreviously. This high density of water vapor andozone observations during February 2004 alloweda detailed study of the composition of the lower-most Arctic stratosphere and its relation to cut-offlows, which are a regular feature over the northernAtlantic Ocean. This data set also allowed adetailed investigation of transport processesacross the polar vortex edge. The winter 2004–2005 measurements collected data on a rare Arcticdehydration event first observed in 1996. Watervapor observations at Sodankylä and Ny Ålesundwill continue, depending on available funds.

Physical Science DivisionIn October 2005, the former Environmental

Technology Laboratory (ETL) of NOAA was reor-ganized into the Physical Science Division. One ofthe new groups in the division is the Polar RegionProcesses Group. The primary activity of thisgroup is the NOAA Atmospheric ObservatoryProgram.

The NOAA Atmospheric Observatory Programis establishing sites for long-term, intensive mea-surements of clouds, radiation, aerosols, surfaceenergy fluxes, and chemistry in Eureka/Alert, Can-ada, and Tiksi, Russia. These measurements willallow comparison with similar observatory mea-surements in Barrow, Alaska. The three sites incombination encompass three major Arctic climateregimes. The locations and measurement suitehave been carefully designed so that the collecteddata can be used to determine the mechanismsthat drive climate change through a combinationof process studies, satellite validation, and model-ing work. It is anticipated that the AtmosphericObservatory sites will also be the focus of a num-ber of interdisciplinary measurements of regionalhydrology, permafrost, ecosystems, and the cryo-sphere that will link the atmospheric measure-ments into the broader Arctic system. The pro-gram is heavily leveraged against Canadian andRussian programs and has a vigorous interagencycooperation with NSF and DOE.

Concentrations of chloro-fluorocarbons controlledby the Montreal Protocol

measured by NOAA/GMD at Barrow, Alaska

(BRW); Niwot Ridge, Col-orado (NWR); MaunaLoa, Hawaii (MLO);

American Samoa (SMO);and South Pole, Antarcti-ca (SPO). Clearly evident

are the north-to-southgradient with Alaska

having the highest gasconcentrations and the

effects of the controlson the production of

the gases.

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Originally, the principal hypothesis of theSEARCH program was that Arctic climate changeis related to the Arctic Oscillation (AO). Thereappeared to have been large-scale spatial co-variability between a number of climatic variablesand the primary modes of the AO. However, themost recent research indicates that during 2000–2005, new climate patterns have evolved, andthere now appears to be less of a correlationbetween the AO and other physical parametersof the Arctic system. This may be the first signof new climate regimes that have resulted fromrecent feedbacks such as evolving albedo, cloudproperties, and reduction of sea ice. Investigatingand monitoring these climate shifts in detail maywell require the detailed measurements proposedby the NOAA Atmospheric Observatory Program.

At present, the only continuous measurementsof Arctic surface radiation, clouds, aerosols, andchemistry sufficient for detailed evaluation ofinteractive climate change processes in the loweratmosphere (0–15 km) are made in Barrow, Alaska.The Barrow facilities include the National WeatherService observatory (with records from the 1920s),the NOAA/CMDL Baseline Observatory (in oper-ation since 1972), and the DOE ARM North Slopeof Alaska (NSA) site (in operation since 1998). It isthe intention of the Atmospheric Observatory Ele-ment of the NOAA SEARCH program to mirror theBarrow atmospheric measurements, first in north-eastern Canada and later in central Siberia.

The full complement of proposed instrumentsis designed to acquire long-term records of cloudproperties, aerosol properties, radiative fluxes,and surface energy exchanges. It is expected thatthese data sets will provide information necessaryfor understanding the processes that determinethe regional climate, with a focus on how cloudsand aerosols affect the balance between the sur-face and the atmosphere. These data sets will alsoallow statistical validation of satellite retrievals inthe Arctic.

A microwave radiometer was installed in Eurekain July 2006. In collaboration with the NSF, it is ex-pected that infrastructure improvements and firstgas and aerosol measurements will begin in Tiksi,Russia, in the spring of 2007, followed by cloudand radiation measurements in the fall of 2007.

As part of the NOAA SEARCH program, theobservatory was deployed to improve atmosphericand sea ice observations. These observations willbe combined with historical data to better under-stand Arctic change.

This installation represents almost a decade oftechnological development, resulting in research-grade instruments adapted for long-term studiesin remote regions. The data collected by theseinstruments will be critical for untangling naturaland anthropogenic influences on cloud propertiesthat may be a key factor in changing atmosphericradiation budgets in the Arctic.

Many indicators suggest that the impacts ofclimate change will be observed most rapidly inthe Arctic. This is a critical region of the globalatmospheric and ocean system where changes indeep ocean circulations, the distribution andthickness of Arctic Ocean ice, the extent of theGreenland ice, and terrestrial carbon dioxide stor-age could have far-reaching impacts for our envi-ronment.

While there is a history of basic measurementsin the Arctic that are measuring how the Arctic cli-mate may be changing, there are almost no moni-toring programs that provide information to deter-mine why the Arctic climate is changing.Consequently, NOAA has teamed with Canadianand U.S. university researchers to deploy a com-prehensive suite of atmospheric sensors in Eure-ka, Canada, at 80°N/ 86°W. This site will collectdetailed measurements of clouds radiation, aero-sols, surface fluxes, and chemistry in the loweratmosphere, as well as key measurements in themiddle and upper atmosphere, that will be suffi-cient to determine the processes driving climatechange.

The NOAA AtmosphericBaseline Observatory

at Barrow, Alaska(Longitude: 71.3°N;

Latitude: 156.61°W).

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The International Polar Year committee hasreceived over 1000 expressions of intent (EoI)in 2005 from researchers from around the worldregarding activities that could contribute to theInternational Polar Year. The IPY committee orga-nized these into a number of clusters along disci-plinary lines. The International Arctic Systems forObserving the Atmosphere EoI that originated inNOAA was chosen to lead a cluster of about 20separate EoIs from 10 countries. The main missionof the IASOA is to coordinate efforts to collectatmospheric data at existing and newly estab-lished intensive Atmospheric Observatories, dis-tributed networks, and field campaigns during theIPY. A second mission of the IASAO is coordinateArctic atmospheric measurements with those ofother IPY activities that are coordinating hydrolo-gy, permafrost, terrestrial, cryospheric, and ocean-ographic measurements. The primary IASAOmechanism will be to establish a Program Coordi-nation office that will facilitate planning meetingsas well as maintain a dynamic website that can beused as a coordination tool internationally for Arc-tic atmospheric research (http://www.ipy.org/development/eoi/proposal-details.php?id=196).

Chemical Science DivisionIn the fall of 2005, the former Aeronomy Labo-

ratory of NOAA was reorganized into the Chemi-cal Science Division.

In 2004, NOAA scientists participated in theDOE-sponsored Atmospheric Radiation Measure-ment (ARM) program, a multi-laboratory, inter-agency program that is a key contributor tonational and international research efforts relatedto global climate change. A primary objective ofthe program was to improve scientific understand-ing of the fundamental physics related to interac-tions between clouds and radiative feedback pro-cesses in the atmosphere, with the ultimate aim ofpromoting the advancement of climate models.Aeronomy Laboratory scientists were at the NorthSlope of Alaska ARM site, which is centered atBarrow, throughout much of September and Octo-ber 2004 to take part in an Intensive OperationalPeriod project known as the Spectral Water Phase.The site is the highest latitude site in the U.S., andthe measurements made there have provided dataabout cloud and radiative processes at high lati-tudes. The Aeronomy Lab made measurementswith a near-infrared spectrometer. The instrumentanalyzes the sunlight that is scattered by cloudsand distinguishes between absorption by thevapor, liquid, and ice phases of water.

Pacific MarineEnvironmental Laboratory

NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Labora-tory (PMEL) conducts ecosystem-based fisheriesoceanography (Eco-FOCI) studies in the BeringSea and the western Gulf of Alaska, principallythrough two programs, North Pacific ClimateRegimes and Ecosystem Productivity (NPCREP)and Fisheries–Oceanography Coordinated Inves-tigations (FOCI). These are cooperative programsamong PMEL, NMFS’s Alaska Fisheries ScienceCenter, and other academic and government part-ners. Eco-FOCI’s goals are to increase under-standing of the Alaskan marine ecosystem, todocument the roles of commercially valuable andendangered species in the ecosystem, to deter-mine factors that affect their survival, and todevelop and test annual indices and models thatpredict ecosystem and commercial fish stock sta-tus for guidance to marine resource managers.

Eco-FOCI scientists conduct research on thecharacter and dynamics of the biophysical envi-ronment through field and laboratory experiments,computer simulations, and conceptual models.Eco-FOCI investigates decadal climate variabilityand its effects on North Pacific and western Arcticecosystems, particularly in light of the develop-ment of an ecosystem-based approach to fisheriesmanagement.

In the Gulf of Alaska, FOCI since 1992 has pre-dicted annual walleye pollock recruitment fromrelationships of fish survival to baroclinicity,transport, wind mixing, and climate forcing. Recentinvestigations have disclosed the importance ofnear-coastal eddies to the transport of nutrientsand other water properties across the continentalshelf between nearshore areas and the basin. Suchprocesses may explain, in part, why the Gulf ofAlaska is so productive.

In the Bering Sea, Eco-FOCI, principallythrough NPCREP, has extended monitoring of theeastern shelf environment northward toward St.Lawrence Island. Seasonal Bering Sea ice hasdiminished significantly in extent, duration, andthickness in the past decade. This has caused agradual warming of the southeastern shelf watersto the degree that the regional composition anddistribution of species is changing.

PMEL also participates in the Study of Envi-ronmental Arctic Change (SEARCH). PMEL, withsupport from NSF, maintains a weather station atthe North Pole and is currently developing proto-cols for monitoring and detecting Arctic change.

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Cooperative Institute forArctic ResearchArctic Climate Impact Assessment

The Arctic Climate Impact Assessment, an activ-ity of the Arctic Council to assess the impacts ofclimate and UV radiation changes in the Arctic,was completed in 2005. An ACIA Secretariat, sup-ported by the U.S. through NSF and NOAA, waslocated in the Cooperative Institute for ArcticResearch (CIFAR) at the University of Alaska Fair-banks and was responsible for the conduct of theassessment, including support of the ACIA Execu-tive Committee and coordination of the technicaleditors, production manager, and lead authors.During 2003–2005, the 200 international authors ofthe assessment participated in various meetingsand forums to prepare the assessment. After aninternal review, an extensive external review of theassessment by about 190 international expertstook place. Responses to thousands of specificreviewer comments were documented and incorpo-rated into the final text. The final report, which is1046 printed pages, deals with impacts of climateand ultraviolet radiation on the environment, oneconomic sectors, and on peoples’ lives. A 140-page overview report entitled Impacts of a Warm-ing Arctic and an 18-page highlights document

were also produced for a more general readership.The overview report and the highlights documentwere released at a final ACIA scientific conferencein Reykjavik, Iceland, on 9–12 November 2004.The complete report was published by CambridgeUniversity Press and released in November 2005.The ACIA report received an honorable mentionfor the ASLI (Atmospheric Sciences LibrariansInternational) Choice Award in 2005. Post-ACIAactivity at CIFAR has included responses to manyinquiries from the media, science communities,nongovernmental and other organizations, and thegeneral public, in addition to distributing theACIA documents.

Russian–American Long TermCensus of the Arctic

In 2003, NOAA and the Russian Academy ofSciences signed a Memorandum of Understandingfor World Ocean and Polar Regions Studies. Thefirst of the joint projects mentioned in the memo-randum is a collaborative U.S.–Russian Federationoceanographic expedition to the Arctic seasregions shared by both countries: the Bering andChukchi Seas. These seas and the life within arethought to be particularly sensitive to global cli-mate change because they are centers where steepthermohaline and nutrient gradients in the ocean

Stations sampled duringthe voyage of the Profes-sor Khromov, a Russianresearch vessel engaged

in the 2004 RUSALCAcruise. The colored area

in the Arctic Oceanindicates a region ofenhanced ice melting

between 1970 and 2001.

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coincide with steep thermal gradients in the atmo-sphere. The Bering Strait acts as the only Pacificgateway into and out of the Arctic Ocean and assuch is critical for the flux of heat between theArctic and the rest of the world. Monitoring theflux of fresh and salt water and establishingbenchmark information about the distribution andmigration patterns of the life in these seas are alsocritical pieces of information needed prior to theemplacement of a climate monitoring network inthis region.

The Russian–American Long Term Census ofthe Arctic (RUSALCA) objectives include supportthe U.S. interagency Study of Environmental ArcticChange (SEARCH) program (psc.apl. washington.edu/search/) and the NOAA Ocean ExplorationProgram (www.oceanexplorer.noaa. gov). Becauseof the trend in reduction of the ice cover in theArctic and the possibility of permanent loss ofseasonal ice cover in the study region as shownby climate models, it is thought that this areamight be subject to significant ecosystem change.RUSALCA is intended to help provide a founda-tion for detecting future ecosystem change and toprovide the potential for discovery of new marineresources.

In November 2003, a workshop on the RUSALCAexpedition mission was held in Moscow, Russia,to define the main research topics and geographi-cal scope. Calls for Letters of Interest were releasedby CIFAR for response by scientists from theU.S. and by the Russian Academy of Sciences forresponse by scientists from Russia. In February

2004, after panelists met in Russia and the U.S.,fourteen programs were funded for a joint U.S.–Russian cruise in the summer of 2004.

The primary study area for the first RUSALCAcruise was the northern Bering Sea (north of 60°N)and the Chukchi Sea to the extent that ice condi-tions permitted. The cruise took place 23 July–24August 2004 on the R/V Khromov, a Russian ice-strengthened research ship. Hydrographic, bio-chemical, and productivity data were collectedfrom the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas and arebeing combined with other data from RUSALCAinvestigators (both in the U.S. and Russia) toassess nutrient and productivity processes.

Participants included individuals from the fol-lowing organizations through funding providedby NOAA and the Russian Academy of Sciences:

• University of Alaska Fairbanks• Smithsonian Institution• University of Tennessee• University of Texas• University of Washington• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution• NOAA Fisheries• NOAA’s Arctic Research Office• NOAA’s Ocean Exploration Office• Fish and Wildlife Service• U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engi-

neering Laboratory• Shirshov Institution of Oceanology, Moscow• VNIIOkeangeologia, St. Petersburg• Zoological Institute, St. Petersburg• Institute of Microbiology, Moscow• Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, St.

Petersburg• Pacific Oceanographical Institute, Vladivostok• Roshydromet, Vladivostok• Russian Federation Navy• ECOSEA, Group Alliance.Benthic macrofaunal biomass was found to be

very high in the southern Chukchi Sea in a knownregion of high water column production. Severalspecimens of northern Pacific crab were collectedin the southeastern Chukchi Sea, which is thethird northernmost documentation of this speciesin the Chukchi Sea. In addition, the Pacific crabOregonia gracilis and the bivalve Pododesmusmacrochisma were also found, which appears tobe the first time in the Chukchi Sea. These find-ings of Pacific taxa in Arctic waters are indicationsof an ecologically significant warming trend.

Clear and persistent patterns in species compo-sition of the copepod Pseudocalanus exist in thestudy area tied to the different water masses, but

Sorting samples duringthe 2004 RUSALCA

cruise.

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there was no obvious pattern in weight-specificegg production despite strong chlorophyll gradi-ents associated with these water masses.

In the Chukchi Sea, benthic communities variedalong an east–west gradient, with the same spe-cies feeding on higher trophic levels in the eastcompared to the west, suggesting a strongerpelagic link in the food web in eastern areas,where pelagic primary production is limited. Inwestern areas, the higher primary productionresults in a significant amount of fresh phytodetri-tus reaching the seafloor and feeding benthiccommunities directly.

A second RUSALCA cruise is planned for thesummer of 2007. An announcement of opportunity,issued through CIFAR in February 2006, has led tothe submission of approximately 20 proposals nowunder review.

Workshop on NOAA Arctic PrioritiesA Workshop on Arctic Priorities, convened by

NOAA on 2–3 February 2005, was coordinated byCIFAR. The workshop served to focus input toNOAA’s planning process for 2008–2012, particu-larly for the International Polar Year and SEARCH.Additional objectives were to identify priorities forNOAA’s response to the Arctic Climate ImpactAssessment. Approximately 30 scientists, primarilyfrom NOAA and the Cooperative Institutes, partic-ipated in the workshop. The workshop report wasprovided to NOAA in March.

The workshop’s recommendations were intendedto foster the environmental and economic mis-sions of NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmo-spheric Research by identifying priorities forArctic research, product development, and theprovision of scientific understanding and leader-ship in the Arctic. Among the recommendationswere the establishment of several intensive atmo-spheric observatories around the periphery of theArctic; the development of a network of ice-basedand moored observing sites to monitor and permitattribution of changes in the Arctic Ocean and itsice cover; the extension of operational and retro-spective analyses of snow cover to include Alaskaand the Arctic; an Arctic system reanalysis in coor-dination with the next global reanalysis; the devel-opment of regional decision support for Alaska;and an assessment of the state of the Arctic on aregular basis. An additional priority—measure-ments of Arctic aerosols and their roles in cloudand radiative processes—emerged from a presen-tation of the workshop report to the NOAA Cli-mate Working Group in March 2005.

Copies of the workshop report can be obtainedfrom CIFAR or from the NOAA Climate Program.

Office of Marine andAviation Operations

Eco-FOCI had extensive field seasons in 2004and 2005, and the Miller Freeman was the primaryplatform for the deployment and recovery of theprogram’s biophysical moorings in the Gulf ofAlaska and Bering Sea. In 2004 approximately 34sea days over three cruises were dedicated tomooring work and hydrography.

In 2005 the Miller Freeman continued to be theprimary platform for the deployment and recoveryof the program’s biophysical moorings, ecosystemobservations, and process studies on recruitmentof larval fish. Mooring deployment and recoverycruises on the Miller Freeman were lasted 42days. Ecosystem observations and recruitmentprocess studies were also conducted in the earlyspring in the Bering Sea (12 days). A humpbackwhale survey was also conducted in the summerby the Oscar Dyson (20 days) in and around theAleutian Islands and Bering Sea.

National Environmental Satellite,Data, and Information ServiceNational Ice Center

The National Ice Center (NIC) is a cooperative,interagency organization responsible for provid-ing Arctic, Antarctic, and Great Lakes ice informa-tion to U.S. and allied armed forces, U.S. govern-ment agencies, and various segments of privateindustry. Manpower and fiscal resources for theNIC are provided by the U.S. Navy, NOAA/NESDIS, and the U.S. Coast Guard. The Office ofResearch and Applications (ORA, soon to becomeSTAR, the Center for Satellite Applications andResearch) is the NESDIS research organizationthat, among other things, supports research activi-ties at NIC. Real-time global, regional, and tactical-scale ice guidance products are generated by NICin support of mission planning, navigation safety,and climate research. Routine products includesatellite-derived sea ice analyses of current iceconditions and forecasts depicting future changesto the sea ice pack. Ice analyses are distributed ina variety of formats including geographic informa-tion system (GIS)-compatible files via the NIC webpage (www.natice.noaa.gov). Metadata that detailthe data sources integrated into routine ice analy-sis products are also available on the NIC web

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page. As of 2006, the NIC has added a daily mar-ginal ice zone (MIZ) product to augment theenhanced daily ice edge product already providedfor the Alaska and Great Lakes region to theNational Weather Service. These products arebeing used to enhance the forecast within theAdvanced Weather Interactive Processing System(AWIPS). Through a collaborative project with theNational Snow and Ice Data Center and the NIC,extension of the High-Resolution Arctic Sea IceClimatology to encompass historical data from1972 to 2004 is near completion. This product isscheduled to be publicly released by the end of2006. The NIC has also begun work on a 1972–2004 sea ice climatology project for the Antarcticregion.

During 2004–2005, the NIC Science andApplied Technology Department reorganized andincreased interaction with outside research andoperational groups in government and academia,both nationally and internationally. These relation-ships are being leveraged to support the maingoals of the department, which include the follow-ing:

• Evaluate new developments in remote sens-ing, digital image processing, automated seaice analysis, and forecasting methods anddetermine potential applications for NIC oper-ations:- Automate the analysis and classification of

data;- Improve operational ice forecasting models;- Optimize active and passive microwave algo-

rithms for operational sea ice analysis;• Develop and execute plans and programs,

both evolutionary and revolutionary, whichenhance the quality and efficiency of ice anal-ysis and forecasting processes to fulfill cur-rent and emerging operational requirements;

• Select and transition mature scientific researchto operations, maintain oversight of the distri-bution of research and development resourcesdedicated to the NIC program from supportingagencies, and recommend appropriate coursesof action based on these investments;

• Improve efficiency of data processing andanalysis through the development of auto-mated data fusion techniques; and

• Develop new ice products by applying newtechniques and by incorporating data fromnew sensors.

The NIC science team transitioned a wide num-ber of data and products from models, satellites,and in situ sensors to operations. In particular,

ENVISAT Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar(ASAR) Global Monitoring Mode (GMM),Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer - EOS(AMSR-E), Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectro-radiometer (MODIS), and WindSat data and prod-ucts were evaluated for operational ice analysis.Daily remote sensing and ice model products areavailable in near-real time on the improved NICexperimental products web page (science.natice.noaa.gov). The cross-validation and use of sub-marine ice draft data, shipboard observations,thickness estimates from ice age and buoy track-ing, shipboard observations, ice mass balancebuoy data, and NIC chart ice thickness proxy esti-mates are now under study. ORA has also contin-ued to explore the application of airborne and sat-ellite altimetry data for estimating sea ice thickness,notwithstanding the failed launch of CryoSat,through the support of NASA P3 altimetry cam-paigns for the validation of IceSat freeboard mea-surements.

ORA implemented a new capability to trackwinds in the polar regions using observationsfrom the MODIS sensor aboard the polar-orbitingsatellites Terra and Aqua. The winds are derivedby tracking water vapor structures in successiveMODIS swaths. This new product providesunprecedented coverage of the polar wind fieldand has shown a positive impact on medium-rangeglobal weather forecasts. The MODIS winds arenow assimilated operationally at the National Cen-ters for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) and theEuropean Centre for Medium Range WeatherForecasts (ECMWF). Access to MODIS polarwinds is available through the Cooperative Insti-tute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS)at the University of Wisconsin-Madison web page(stratus.ssec.wisc.edu/projects/polarwinds).

ORA has continued to maintain and developthe Alaska synthetic aperture radar (SAR) demon-stration (AKDEMO), which provides experimental,high-resolution (1-km), SAR-derived winds andvessel positions for open water areas in the BeringSea and other Arctic seas (www.orbit.nesdis.noaa.gov/sod/mecb/sar). Studies show that thesewinds are accurate to better than 2 m/s. The exper-imental wind product is useful for understandinggap winds, barrier jets, and wind shadowing byislands such as the Aleutians. Such knowledgecan be beneficial to safety of coastal transporta-tion. SAR wind products are being evaluated as atool for the site selection and placement of off-shore and coastal wind farms. AKDEMO SARimagery, along with vessel positions, has beenused in Alaska to improve guidance to fishing

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vessels operating near the ice edge. SAR imageryis also used for monitoring river ice breakup in thelarger Alaskan rivers, such as the Yukon andKuskokwim, and the Yellowstone River in Montana.

NIC manages the U.S. Interagency Arctic BuoyProgram (USIABP), which provides an importantsource of surface meteorological data and icedrift information in the Arctic. Since its inceptionin 1991, the mission of the USIABP has been toestablish and maintain a network of 40 evenlyspaced meteorological buoys on the drifting Arc-tic ice pack. NIC achieves this goal through thecoordination of deployments and the cooperationof USIABP participants in the International ArcticBuoy Program (IABP). Areas of cooperationinclude the development of new buoy technolo-gies, the acquisition of replacement buoys, themonitoring of sea ice buoy network, and theexploitation of the buoy network observations.During 2004–2005, nearly 95% of all Arctic driftingmeteorological buoys reported data in real timeover the Global Telecommunications System. Real-time buoy data are used to initialize operationalweather and ice forecast models. In 2005, NICjoined the Steering Committee of the InternationalProgramme for Antarctic Buoys (IPAB) as it seeksto participate in expanding the in situ sea ice ob-servational network globally.

National Snow and Ice Data Center/World Data Center for Glaciology

The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC)was chartered by NOAA/NESDIS in 1982 to pro-vide a focus for cryospheric data managementactivities. NSIDC is operated under an agreementbetween NOAA and the University of Colorado’sCooperative Institute for Research in Environmen-tal Sciences and is affiliated with the NESDISNational Geophysical Data Center (NGDC), Boul-der (1976– present). NSIDC is co-located with theWorld Data Center for Glaciology, Boulder, as wellas several agency-funded data management activi-ties. These include the NSF-funded Arctic SystemSciences Data Center, U.S. Antarctic Data Coordi-nation Center, and Antarctic Glaciological DataCenter; the Frozen Ground Data Center, supportedby the International Arctic Research Center, Uni-versity of Alaska Fairbanks; the NOAA@NSIDCprogram; and the NASA Distributed Active ArchiveCenter (DAAC) for Snow and Ice. The latter pro-gram provides more than 80% of NSIDC’s annualbudget and supports Earth System Enterprise datasets such as AMSR-E and MODIS products, aswell as “heritage” data sets such as the nearly 30-year record of sea ice concentration from satellitepassive microwave data and numerous in siturecords of snow, ice, and frozen ground.

The number of data management centers atNSIDC implies a compartmentalization that in factis largely absent. All programs share the expertiseof each, and NSIDC’s scientists, through theirinteractions with data management staff, help keepdata management efforts focused on science sup-port. In 2004 and 2005, 106 data sets were added tothe catalog. The online interface provides accessto 562 data sets. These data sets exemplify thespirit of cooperation that the cryospheric researchcommunity shares, as it would not be possible tomake them available without support from severalagencies and many individual investigators.

NSIDC is exploring new methods of data man-agement and data access. The Global Land IceMeasurements from Space (GLIMS) project, forexample, uses map server technology with anOpen Geospatial Consortium-compliant interface.This collaborative effort between NASA, the U.S.Geological Survey (USGS), and more than sixtyinstitutions worldwide is creating a glacier inven-tory containing information about the currentextent and rates of all the world’s glacial resourcesderived from satellite imagery (largely AdvancedSpaceborne Thermal Emission and ReflectionRadiometer, or ASTER, and Landsat).

ASTER image showingpart of the glacier systemof the Akshiyrak Range,

Tien Shan Mountains,central Asia, with glacier

outlines from a 1943 mapin blue and from the 2001ASTER image in orange.

The image and outlinesare from the GLIMS

Viewer.

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One of the top science stories in 2005 was themarked decline of the Arctic sea ice cover. In aMarch press release, NSIDC scientists noted thatwhile summertime ice extent had been trendingdownward for some time, the sea ice tended torecover its full extent in the Arctic winter. That haschanged: ice reached new record lows in Decem-ber, January, and February 2005. The trend in win-ter ice extent is now about –3% per decade. Thedownward trend in summertime extent is steeper(–8% per decade). The September minimummarked the fourth consecutive year of exception-ally low Arctic ice extent. In a joint press releasewith colleagues at the NASA Goddard SpaceFlight Center and the University of Washington,NSIDC scientists argued that beyond the continu-ing influence of higher temperatures on the icepack, we may be seeing the beginning of an accel-eration as feedbacks in the climate system takehold. NSIDC’s Mark Serreze called 2005 the yearthat “puts an exclamation point on the pattern ofArctic warming we’ve seen in recent years.”

The Sea Ice Index interactive web site allowsscientists and the public to track ongoing changesin ice extent. The site received almost 40,000 visitsin September 2005, as ice reached a new recordlow extent.

On an international level, activity in 2004 and2005 built toward NSIDC’s planned role in theInternational Polar Year (IPY), which begins in2007. NSIDC leads or is involved in about 10% ofthe over-200 IPY lead projects. NSIDC has a pro-posed leading international coordination role forIPY data management, with an IPY Data and Infor-mation Management Service Expression of Intent.NSIDC scientists are also involved in the Fourth

Assessment Report for the IPCC for The Cryo-sphere (Working Group 1) and Polar Regions(Working Group 2).

NSIDC is the repository for data from theUSIABP. All buoy data are quality controlled withinsix months of receipt and then assembled into ahistorical (1979–2004) database that is analyzedby the Polar Science Center of the Universityof Washington (iabp.apl.washington. edu) andarchived at NSIDC. These data have been usefulin validating global climate models and in climatechange research. Buoy data are also used to gen-erate a three-hour spatially and temporally interpo-lated data set of surface pressure and temperature.

National Oceanographic Data CenterNODC and the co-located World Data Center

for Oceanography (WDC Oceanography) in SilverSpring, Maryland, continue to have an active dataexchange program and engage in collaborativejoint projects with many Arctic countries, academicinstitutions, other Federal agencies, and interna-tional organizations. In June 2006, NODC/OceanClimate Laboratory (OCL) will release the WorldOcean Database 2005 (WOD05), which will con-tain oceanographic physical, chemical, and biolog-ical data dating back to 1827. These profiles reflectdata obtained from bottles, conductivity–tempera-ture–depth instruments and plankton measure-ments, mechanical bathythermographs, expend-able bathythermographs, surface-only instruments(bucket, thermosalinograph), subsurface driftingfloats, and surface drifting buoys with thermistor

Graphics from the Sea Ice Index site, updated monthly, showing Arcticice in retreat. The magenta line on the right image is the median Septem-ber ice extent for 1979–2000.

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chains. Approximately 20% of these data wereadded since the 2002 publication of World OceanDatabase 2001. The exchange of data is facilitatedunder the auspices of the IntergovernmentalOceanographic Commission (IOC) Global Oceano-graphic Data Archaeology and Rescue (GODAR)project and the World Ocean Database (WOD)project. These efforts are supported by NOAA’sOffice of Global Programs (OGP) and NOAA’sEnvironmental Science, Data, and InformationManagement (ESDIM) program.

Data exchange and collaborative activities havebeen particularly fruitful with the Russian Federa-tion for many years. Another product has beenpublished, Climatic Atlas of the Arctic Seas 2003:Part 1, Database of the Barents, Kara, Laptev,and White Seas. It was prepared jointly with theMurmansk Marine Biological Institute (MMBI),Russian Academy of Sciences. This atlas containsdata from about 400,000 oceanographic stationsfrom 1810 to 2002. There are more than 20,000plankton samples, including 260 collected duringcruises of nuclear icebreakers in regions previouslyinaccessible for studies during the winter. The atlasalso includes about 100 benthos samples collectedalong the Kola Meridian in 1921–1922 and 1977.All of these data are incorporated into the WorldOcean Database and made available online.

Further information about and access to theWorld Ocean Database and the products associ-ated with the International Ocean and Atlas Infor-mation Series can be found at www.nodc.noaa.gov/OC5/indprod.html.

The NOAA Central Library, located in SilverSpring, Maryland, is the largest oceanic and atmo-spheric sciences library in the western hemisphereand has extensive holdings related to Arctic explo-ration and Arctic science. The library’s onlinecatalog has over 1,800 entries related to Arcticactivities and another 1,000 entries related tooceanography and fisheries of the Arctic marginalseas. The library’s on-site collection is supple-mented by an additional 1,200 historical docu-ments that can be found through the library’s tra-ditional card catalog. Access can be gained to thefull range of publications that are dedicated spe-cifically to Arctic science and issues. Pages of cli-mate data from the polar areas of Alaska, Norway,and Russia beginning from 1824 are also availableonline, funded by the NOAA Climate Data Mod-ernization program.

As an adjunct to textual material, the CentralLibrary also manages the NOAA Photo LibraryCollection. There is an archive of over 1,000 black

and white Arctic photographs and negatives andan online collection of over 600 public domainimages related to Arctic themes.

In support of the International Polar Year 2007–2008, the Central Library has created a comprehen-sive bibliography entitled International PolarYear 2007–2008: Resources on Polar Researchin the NOAA Central Library Network: A SelectedBibliography. The bibliography is formatted bytitle from entries in the library’s online catalog andfrom the library’s historical collections. The dataand listings are comprehensive from the 18th cen-tury to the present. This resource contains manyformats, including print, CD-ROM, online full-textdocuments, digital videos, digital images, onlinecruise data, and web resources. This documentprovides full-text links, copyright permitting, tosignificant polar documents in the NOAA librarycollections. Over 150 of the publications werescanned as full text, and there are also links toscientific data sets available from the NationalOceanographic Data Center (NODC) OceanArchive System. This bibliography is also anInternet locator for printed and online resourcesin polar research.

The bibliography is available online for down-loading in Microsoft Word and in PDF formatsat docs.lib.noaa.gov/rescue/Bibliographies/IPY2007.doc and docs.lib.noaa.gov/rescue/Bibliographies/IPY2007.pdf. Publications listed inthe bibliography may also be requested throughinterlibrary loan.

National Climatic Data CenterNCDC was actively engaged in the Arctic Cli-

mate Impact Assessment, which was published in2005. Specifically, two NCDC researchers werecontributing authors to Chapter 2 (“Arctic Climate:Past and Present”). NCDC contributions focusedon changes in land-surface air temperature andprecipitation in the Arctic during the 20th century.

National Marine Fisheries Service–Alaska Fisheries Science CenterResource Assessment andConservation Engineering Division

The Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) ofNMFS continued its long-standing commitment toassessment studies of U.S. living marine resourcesin the Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, and Gulf ofAlaska during 2004 and 2005. This effort includedfishery-independent resource surveys, collectionof data from commercial fisheries through fisheries

Further information aboutand access to the NOAALibrary can be found at

http://www.lib.noaa.gov/.The point of contact for

the NOAA Library is Jan-ice Beattie, U.S. Depart-

ment of Commerce,National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administra-tion, NOAA Central

Library, 1315 East-WestHighway (E/OC4), Sec-

ond Floor, Silver Spring,MD 20910; 301-713-

2607, ext. 139.

The point of contact onaccess to the on-line pub-

lications listed in theInternational Polar Year

2007–2008: Resources onPolar Research in the

NOAA Central LibraryNetwork: A Selected Bib-liography is Anna Fiolek,U.S. Department of Com-merce, National Oceanicand Atmospheric Admin-istration, NOAA CentralLibrary, 1315 East-WestHighway (E/OC4), 2nd

Floor, Silver Spring, MD20910; 301-713-2607,

ext. 147.

The point of contact forthe Ocean Climate Labo-

ratory, the World DataCenter for Oceanography,

and the World OceanDatabase is Sydney

Levitus, U.S. Departmentof Commerce, National

Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministration/Ocean Cli-

mate Laboratory, 1315East-West Highway (E/

OC5), Silver Spring, MD20910; 301-713-3290,ext. 194. For the Arcticdatabases, the point of

contact is Igor Smolyar,U.S. Department of Com-merce, NOAA/OCL, 1315

East-West Highway (E/OC5), Silver Spring, MD

20910; 301-713-3295,ext. 206.

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observers, collection of recreational and commer-cial harvest statistics, and basic population biologyand ecological research. The scientific informationgenerated by these activities supports Federalfishery conservation and management responsibil-ities in the 200-mile U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone.

During 2004 and 2005, living marine resourcepopulations in western U.S. Arctic waters weresampled at sea aboard NOAA ships, charteredfishing vessels, and cooperating foreign researchvessels. Significant area-extensive survey effortswere conducted in the eastern Bering Sea, theAleutian Islands, and the Gulf of Alaska. The prin-cipal survey methods included bottom trawls fordemersal fish and crabs and a combination ofhydroacoustics and trawls (both midwater andbottom gear) for semipelagic fish. Trawl andacoustic surveys were used to estimate biomassand define community structure, and biologicalcollections were taken to examine variability ingrowth, mortality, and stock recruitment. Besidesproviding a time series, annual assessment sur-veys provide opportunities and platforms forintra- and interagency programs for collectingphysical and biological data for understandingecological processes in the Arctic region over arange of spatial and temporal scales. Universitiesand other outside organizations also participate inand benefit from collaborative research done dur-ing assessment surveys.

In addition, researchers launched a new NOAAprogram—Climate Regimes and Ecosystem Pro-ductivity (NPCREP) —whose focus is to monitorand understand climate-induced change in marineecosystems and apply this knowledge to NOAA’secosystem approach to management. The programis a partnership between the AFSC and NOAA’sPacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL).The program’s major efforts are in the eastern Ber-ing Sea, where researchers maintain a network ofbiophysical buoys and conduct monitoring andprocess cruises to examine how variations inatmosphere–ice–ocean coupling modulates theproduction at lower trophic levels and the abun-dance, distribution, and transport of larval fishes.Sea time included three cruises on NOAA vessels,one on a UNOLS vessel, and one on a foreignresearch vessel. Field operations included mooringdeployments and recovery, deployment of satellite-tracked drifters, measurements of water columnproperties (heat, salt, nutrients, chlorophyll), andnet tows for zooplankton and larval and juvenilefishes. Studies to understand the linkages to highertrophic levels will begin in FY 2006.

To manage the Arctic ecosystem, we need toaccurately assess species diversity and composi-tion. To greatly improve the identification ofknown species, the Groundfish Assessment Pro-gram’s Systematics Laboratory publishes fieldguides and scientific papers on taxonomic revi-sions. One of the publications involved collabora-tion with the Recruitment Processes Program todescribe the complete developmental series (larvalto adult fish) of one family of fishes. The System-atics Laboratory instituted a vouchering systemfor documenting occurrences of unusual speciesand depositing specimens in university and muse-um collections. In 2004 –2005, the SystematicsLaboratory described nine new species from threefamilies of fishes in the Arctic. Fish specimenspotentially representing at least 12 more newspecies have been collected and still need to bedescribed. New invertebrate species from the Arc-tic also continue to be collected, and the staff iscollaborating with experts from universities andother institutions to have them cataloged anddescribed. Accurate identification and enumera-tion of every marine species in the Arctic is essen-tial if we expect to understand the dynamics of theArctic ecosystem.

Indices of ecosystem status and recruitmentsuccess are continually being developed, refined,and evaluated by the Ecosystem and FisheriesOceanography Coordinated Investigations (Eco-FOCI), a collaborative program between the AFSCand PMEL. The indices generated by the FOCIand NPCREP programs are included in the “Eco-systems Considerations” chapter of the council’sStock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE)reports and the PICES North Pacific EcosystemStatus Report. They are also available on NOAA’sBering Climate web page (www.beringclimate.noaa.gov). They are one source of information availablefor an ecosystem approach to management. Inaddition, the program is actively working on mod-els that couple physics and lower trophic levels tofishes. One goal of such models is to generate pre-dictions on the future recruitment success of fishpopulations with enough lead time to be of use toresource managers.

Resource Ecology andFisheries Management Division

The REFM Division conducts research toassess the abundance, dynamics, and ecosysteminteractions of crab and groundfish stocks offAlaska in support of their optimal utilization andmanagement. It also conducts socioeconomic

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studies to assist NMFS in meeting its stewardshipresponsibilities. Research is focused towards pro-viding fishery, socioeconomic, and ecosystemassessment advice to decision makers to advancean ecosystem approach to management of Alas-ka’s living marine resources. The REFM Divisionprovides scientific support to U.S. delegations tointernational commissions and bilateral fisheriesagreements, as well as central coordination of theAFSC’s responsibilities involving the NationalEnvironmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Free-dom of Information Act (FOIA). The followingis a brief summary of key research activities andaccomplishments during FY 2004–2005 by theREFM Division’s four main research programs:Status of Stocks and Multispecies Assessments,Resource Ecology and Ecosystems Modeling,Economic and Social Sciences Research, and Ageand Growth Studies.

Status of Stocks and Multispecies Assessments.The Stock Assessment and Multispecies Assess-ments (SSMA) program is responsible for deter-mining the condition of fisheries resources in theU.S. Exclusive Economic Zone off Alaska usingdata collected by AFSC scientists and othersand for developing strategies for managing thoseresources. Research in FY 2004–2005 focusedon updating information on population trends,estimating acceptable biological catch and over-fishing levels, and developing management strate-gies as presented in annual stock assessments.Research conducted by the SSMA program staffhas included retrospective studies of processesunderlying shifts in production, distribution, orabundance of groundfish in the Bering Sea, Aleu-tian Islands, and Gulf of Alaska regions. TheSSMA program has focused on developing next-generation analytical methods for evaluating stockcondition, including new methods for improvingthe accuracy and predictability of stock status andtrends and developing improved modeling tech-niques. Scientists within the group conductednumerous studies to assess key vital rates, includ-ing growth, mortality, and maturity schedules.SSMA staff also designed and implemented fieldstudies to improve data collection on ships ofopportunity. Finally, forecast models were devel-oped by SSMA staff to assist in the analysis ofenvironmental impacts of fishing.

The Fishery Interaction Team (FIT), a compo-nent of the SSMA program, investigates theeffects of commercial fishing on top trophic levelconsumers. During FY 2004–2005, members ofthe team conducted studies to determine whether

commercial fishing operations are capable ofimpacting the foraging success of sea lions, eitherthrough disturbance of prey schools or throughdirect competition for a common prey. Researchfocused on the three major groundfish prey of sealions: walleye pollock, Pacific cod, and Atka mack-erel. FIT investigated the potential effects of com-mercial fishing on sea lion prey fields in two ways:by conducting field studies to directly examinethe impact of fishing on sea lion prey fields and toevaluate the efficacy of trawl exclusion zones; andby studying fish distribution, behavior, and lifehistory at spatial scales relevant to sea lion forag-ing (tens of nautical miles).

Resource Ecology and Ecosystems Modeling.The Resource Ecology and Ecosystem Modelingprogram focuses on the collection and analysis ofdata relating to trophic interactions in the NorthPacific and Bering Sea regions. During FY 2004–2005, these data were incorporated into environ-mental assessments and single-species, multispe-cies, and ecosystem models. Groundfish foodhabits data were systematically collected and ana-lyzed, and groundfish feeding ecology was stud-ied. Research on quantifying seabird–fisheryinteractions was conducted, along with efforts towork with industry in reducing these interactions.Ecosystem indicators have also been developedand incorporated into ecosystem-level assess-ments of the effects of climate and fishing on eco-systems. A variety of predator–prey models arebeing developed to forecast the effects of fishingand climate on marine ecosystem production andfood web structure.

Economic and Social Sciences Research. Theprimary mission of the Economic and Social Sci-ences Research program is to provide economicand sociocultural information that will assistNMFS in meeting its stewardship responsibilities.Research activities in FY 2004–2005 in support ofthis mission have included collecting economicand sociocultural data relevant for the conserva-tion and management of living marine resources;developing models to monitor changes in eco-nomic and sociocultural indicators and to estimatethe economic and sociocultural impacts of alterna-tive management measures; providing baselinesociocultural information and analyses of fishingcommunities of the North Pacific and Bering Searegions; and improving the economic analysis ofbycatch regulations in Alaskan fisheries.

Age and Growth Studies. The Age and GrowthStudies program provides age data that contrib-utes to the basic understanding of a species,

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whether it is in the context of sustainable fisheries,species conservation, or species ecology. DuringFY 2004–2005, the program focused primarily onthe production of age data for age-structuredmodeling of exploited fish populations, such asyellowfin sole, walleye pollock, Pacific cod, Atkamackerel, northern rockfish, and Pacific oceanperch populations in the Bering Sea and AleutianIslands regions. In FY 2005 alone, the programaged over 33,000 individual groundfish specimensfrom Alaska waters. The program also conductsresearch in age validation to assess the accuracyof the aging methods that are being applied. Alsobeing studied is the aging of new species, such asGreenland turbot and shortraker rockfish, whichmay require new aging methodologies.

National Marine Mammal LaboratoryThe National Marine Mammal Laboratory

(Alaska Fisheries Science Center) and the ProtectedResources Management Division (Alaska RegionalOffice) are responsible for research on and man-agement of 22 species of marine mammals thatcommonly occur in Alaska. These marine mammalsinclude five endangered cetacean species (bow-head, fin, humpback, North Pacific right, andsperm whales), one pinniped species (Steller sealion) that is threatened in one portion and endan-gered in another portion of its range, and threedepleted stocks (Cook Inlet beluga whale, north-ern fur seal, and AT1 killer whales). Field researchby NMML staff on marine mammals off centraland northern Alaska focused on seven pinnipedand two cetacean species during 2004 and 2005:Steller sea lions, harbor seals, northern fur seals,bearded seals, ribbon seals, ringed seals, spottedseals, Cook Inlet beluga whales, and bowheadwhales in the Bering Sea. In addition, passiveacoustic technology has recently been used toprovide new information on the seasonal distribu-tion of large whales.

Northern Fur Seals. Population assessmentstudies during the 2004 and 2005 breeding sea-sons established that the Pribilof Island popula-tion declined at 6% per year since 1998, while theBogoslof Island (nearer the Aleutian Island chain)population increased at 12% per year since 1997.Long-term declines of the Pribilof Island popula-tion, which account for about 56% of the globalfur seal population, had previously stabilizedsince 1983 and 1988 at Saint Paul and Saint GeorgeIslands, respectively. A suite of studies were con-tinued or initiated investigating multiple hypothe-ses that may account for these trends, including

studies of diet habits, foraging and migratorybehavior, and causes of pup mortality. An at-seatracking study in 2004 examined foraging site fidel-ity of lactating fur seals in the Bering Sea and willcompare results with similar studies conductedin the previous decade. In collaboration withresearchers from the University of Alaska Fair-banks and Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia,Canada, with funding from NOAA and the NorthPacific Research Board, studies were conductedduring 2004–2005 investigating the consequencesof adult female foraging strategies during summer(in the Bering Sea) and winter (in the North PacificOcean) on condition, pup production, and growth.NMML’s telemetry data on fur seal foraging andmigration behavior are also combined with satellite-derived oceanographic data to investigate theimportance of oceanographic features. In the fallof 2005, a total of 99 weaned pups at the Pribilofand Bogoslof Islands were instrumented withsatellite telemeters to investigate post-weaningdispersal from rookeries.

Steller Sea Lions. NMML continued to monitorsea lion population status, foraging behavior, andhealth and condition to test hypotheses about thedecline or lack of recovery of endangered Stellersea lions in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands.This research was composed of a suite of studiesincluding aerial and ship-based surveys of abun-dance, survival and vital rate estimation, geneticstock differentiation, satellite tracking of divebehavior and movements and relationships withoceanographic features, and dietary habits.Although there were small increases in pup num-bers at trend rookeries in the Kenai–Kiska area(4%) and in the western stock overall (3%) during2001–2005, there were strong regional differencesin the recent trends, suggesting that the magni-tude or number of factors affecting the westernstock of Steller sea lions also varied regionally.The largest decline in pup counts (–30%) occurredin the western Aleutian Islands, while smallerdeclines were observed in the central Gulf of Alaska(–4%) and central Aleutian Islands (–2%). In theBering Sea, counts of Steller sea lion pups onWalrus Island (near St. Paul Island in the PribilofIslands) in 2005 were the smallest on record.

Ice-Associated Seals. The four species of ice-associated seals (bearded, spotted, ribbon, andringed seals), collectively known as “ice seals,”are important resources for northern coastal AlaskaNative communities and are likely to be key eco-logical components of Arctic marine ecosystems.Yet, despite mandates by the Marine Mammal Pro-

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tection Act to assess the status of these species,relatively little is known of their abundance, popu-lation trends, seasonal distributions, stocks, andfood habits. The distributions and densities of ice-dwelling seals are highly sensitive to suitable seaice conditions, and as such, these seals may beparticularly vulnerable to climate change. Changesin sea ice extent have been non-uniform; therefore,the effects on seals are likely to occur on regionalscales, emphasizing the need for quality datathroughout their range. NMML researchers haverecently initiated projects to address these issuesby supporting the genetic analyses of tissues col-lected during field research projects and by instru-menting these species with satellite-linked datarecorders (SDRs). The SDRs, which fall off whenthe seals molt in the spring, provide data on aseal’s location and the timing and depths of itsdives. The data, received through the Argos sys-tem, can be analyzed to provide correction factorsfor seals missed (not hauled out) during sightingssurveys, information on habitat selection (forag-ing and haul-out locations) and seasonal move-ments (post-molt migration routes), and informa-tion on foraging behavior.

In October 2004, in cooperation with the Kotze-bue Native village and researchers from the Uni-versity of Alaska Fairbanks and the Alaska De-partment of Fish and Game, two female young-ofthe-year bearded seals were captured in set nets inKotzebue Sound and instrumented with SDRs. Anadditional seven female and eight male young-of-the-year bearded seals and two adult male andthree female young-of-the-year spotted seals werecaptured and instrumented in October 2005. The17 bearded seals were the first to be instrumentedwith SDRs in Alaska. Data from instrumented indi-viduals are being collected on a continuing basis.Further analyses of these data will include investi-gations of the potential effects of bathymetry, iceconcentration, and ice extent on their movementsand diving behavior.

In June 2005, NMML researchers successfullylive-captured ten ribbon seals off the coast ofeastern Kamchatka, Russia. The seals were cap-tured in hoop nets on the ice floes where theywere resting, and they were physically restrainedand instrumented. The two adult males, three adultfemales, and five pups were outfitted with SDRs,representing the first instance of live-capture andinstrumentation of ribbon seals. Unlike ringedseals, which follow the ice edge north as it melts,some researchers have speculated that most rib-bon seals remain in the Bering Sea and become

pelagic during the summer. If true, the impact thatribbon seals may have on the Bering Sea’s inverte-brate and fish stocks could be significant. Prelimi-nary results indicate that these pagophilic sealsmay, after the molt, remain primarily in the ice-freeareas south of the Bering Strait. Most of the sealsdispersed southeast into ice-free areas soon afterthey were tagged, with some adults traveling intothe North Pacific, foraging south of the centralAleutian Islands. Data from instrumented individ-uals are still being collected, and a cruise to cap-ture and instrument additional ribbon seals at thesouthern ice edge of the eastern Bering Sea wascompleted in the spring of 2006.

Accurate population estimates will be of littlevalue without proper identification of stock struc-ture, and while collecting tissue samples for geneticanalysis from the subsistence harvest is useful,the harvest rarely takes place during the breedingseason, so it is not possible to relate those sam-ples to stock structure. In June 2005, researchersfrom NMML, University of Alaska Southeast, andthe North Slope Borough conducted a pilot studyat Peard Bay, Alaska, which utilized small, location-only SDRs, mounted on flipper tags, to determinewhether ringed seals returned to the same breed-ing locations in successive breeding seasons.Such a result would indicate that dispersal ratesare low and that populations are therefore moresusceptible to depletion or extinction. The geneticdiversity within a breeding location could alsoprovide strong evidence for or against philopatry,so researchers collected genetic samples from cap-tured ringed seals and from molted skin found onthe ice around seals’ breathing holes that will beanalyzed for indications of site fidelity and stockstructure. This work was continued and expanded inthe summer of 2006.

The best way to conserve and provide steward-ship of marine mammal populations that are criticalto the subsistence of Alaska Natives is through apartnership between NOAA Fisheries—the Federalagency with management authority—and theAlaska Native resource users. Such a partnershipshould provide for the full and equal participationby Alaska Native tribes in decisions affectingthe subsistence management of marine mammals.Recent workshops have resulted in the creation ofan ice seal co-management committee consistingsolely of representatives of Alaska Native tribes.The AFSC has the responsibility for scientificresearch and stock assessments of ice seals inAlaska and therefore has expertise and data rele-vant to many issues of concern of the potential ice

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seal co-management partners. The AFSC is anactive participant in their meetings and has taken alead role in developing the Alaska ice seal state-wide research plan.

In 1999 the first phase of a multi-year programto advance the use of passive acoustics for detec-tion and assessment of large whales in offshoreAlaskan waters was initiated at NOAA’s NationalMarine Mammal Laboratory and Pacific MarineEnvironmental Laboratory (PMEL). To date, auton-omous recorders have been successfully deployedin the Gulf of Alaska (1999–2001), the southeast-ern Bering Sea (2000–present), and the westernBeaufort Sea (003–2004). Seasonal occurrencesof six endangered species (blue, fin, humpback,North Pacific right, bowhead, and sperm whales)have been documented based on call receptions inthese remote ocean regions (www.magazine.noaa.gov/). Detection of North Pacific right whale callswas given highest priority in the southeasternBering Sea because of the whale’s criticallyendangered status. Analyses to date show thatright whales occur there from May through Novem-ber, with the greatest number of calls recorded inSeptember and October. In addition, calls from finand humpback whales were ubiquitous on record-ers deployed in the Bering Sea. Three recordersdeployed in the Beaufort Sea were placed near anoceanographic mooring line in collaboration withthe Western Arctic Shelf–Basin Interaction (SBI)project (sbi.utk.edu). Although the target speciesin this case was the bowhead whale, data analysesrevealed calls of North Pacific gray whales eachmonth from October 2003 through May 2004. Thediscovery of these calls through the Arctic winterwas truly a surprise and may indicate a shift inrange and behavior for this species.

Cook Inlet Beluga Whales. Systematic aerialsurveys have been conducted in Cook Inlet todocument beluga distribution and abundanceeach June or July since 1993. During this period,the distribution has shrunk to only the northernportions of the inlet. Abundance declined until1998, when unregulated hunting was stopped,but since then the abundance—approximately 340whales—has not changed appreciably. This stockwas designated as depleted under the MarineMammal Protection Act in 2000, and a statusreview is underway to determine whether thisstock should be listed as threatened or endangered.In addition to the aerial surveys, the research pro-gram includes tagging effort to determine location,dive timing, and movements of belugas; aerialphotography to discriminate color phases of

whales (belugas become whiter as they age); fattyacid analysis to record beluga diet; genetic analy-sis to document how distinct belugas of CookInlet are from other stocks; and habitat modeling.Scientists from NMML work in cooperation withthe Alaska Beluga Whale Committee, the CookInlet Marine Mammal Council, the Alaska NativeMarine Mammal Native Hunters Committee,the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, andNMFS’s Alaska Regional Office.

Bowhead Whale Stock Structure. Concernswere expressed at the 2004 Scientific Committeemeeting of the International Whaling Commissionthat there might be more than one stock of bow-head whales in the seas around Alaska. These dis-cussions initiated a research program that led to arange of proposed studies, including analysis ofaerial photographs of bowheads (comparing imagesprovides ratios of re-identifications of individualwhales between years and sample areas); geneticanalysis for stock discreteness; satellite taggingto track individual whales through their migra-tions; moored recorders to provide acoustic moni-tors of whales in the sample area year-round;interviews to collect traditional knowledge fromwhaling villages; reviews of historical whalingrecords to better determine the distribution ofbowheads during the time of commercial whaling;and modeling exercises to provide a probabilityanalysis of various hypothetical scenarios. Thesestudies were underway in 2005 and 2006 in prepa-ration for a critical review of bowhead informationat the 2007 IWC meeting.

Auke Bay LaboratoryNearshore Fish Assemblages near Barrow,

Alaska. In 2004 and 2005 the Auke Bay Laboratoryassisted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in aCoastal Storm Damage Reduction Study near Bar-row, Alaska. The objective of the study was toevaluate the potential effects of beach erosion andreplenishment on nearshore fishery resources.Fish assemblages were sampled with a beachseine at 26 sites. The beach adjacent to Barrow iseroding at a rapid rate, and Cooper Island, PointBarrow, and Skull Cliff have been proposed aspossible sources of replacement sediment or rock.The total catch at all sites was over 3,000 fish in2004 and 718 fish in 2005. The mean catch perseine haul was greatest for sites near Barrow andleast at Cooper Island. At Cooper Island, the meancatch per seine haul was greater on the BeaufortSea side of the island than in Elson Lagoon. Themost abundant fish captured on the seaward side

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of Cooper Island were juvenile cottids, whereasthe most abundant species captured in ElsonLagoon was least cisco. The most abundant fishnear Barrow and Skull Cliff were juvenile poachers,juvenile gadids, and capelin. Overall, the mostabundant fish captured were juvenile gadids, com-prising 51% of the total catch in 2005. A third yearof the study will be completed in 2006 to provide abetter understanding of the inter-annual variabilityin species composition and fish abundance.

Contaminant Research in the Bering Sea andGulf of Alaska. Auke Bay Laboratory collectedforage fish species from the Bering Sea and east-ern Gulf of Alaska and examined them for orga-nochlorines between 2001 and 2003. They havesince reported on a comparison of walleye pollockfrom the perimeter of the Bering basin and south-eastern Alaska, which indicated that the highestlevels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) andDDTs were found among southeastern Alaskafish. In addition, data describing organochlorinesin demersal species (Pacific cod, arrowtooth floun-der, and Atka mackerel) collected from the AleutianIslands suggest that Adak Island is a significantpoint source of contamination.

Yukon River Radio Telemetry Program. TheYukon River chinook salmon radio telemetry pro-gram, a cooperative study between the AlaskaDepartment of Fish and Game and the NationalMarine Fisheries Service, conducted a full-scale,basin-wide tagging and monitoring program in2004. A total of 995 fish were radio-tagged duringthe study and monitored during up-river migrationby 39 remote tracking stations and aerial trackingsurveys. Movement rates averaged 55 km/day forfish returning to the upper Yukon River, whereasfish returning to the lower basin traveled substan-tially slower (34–38 km/day). A total of 320 fishthat moved up-river were harvested in fisheries,including 276 fish in the U.S. and 44 fish in Cana-da. A total of 719 fish were tracked to specificreaches within the basin: 283 fish to the Alaskaportion of the Yukon River; 8 fish to the PorcupineRiver; 195 fish to the Canadian portion of theYukon River main stem; and 58 fish to Canadianreaches of the Yukon River main stem or to associ-ated tributaries not monitored by tracking stationsor surveyed by aircraft.

Pacific Salmon: Bering Sea and Western AlaskaSalmonid Populations. To provide criticalinformation on the marine ecology of Pacific salm-on and other important commercial fish species,scientists from the Alaska Fisheries Science Cen-ter’s Ocean Carrying Capacity (OCC) program con-

ducted fall surveys in 2004 and 2005 on nektonalong the eastern Bering Sea shelf. The surveyswere extensive, covering eastern Bering Sea shelfwaters from the Alaska Peninsula to KotzebueSound. The research is part of a larger Bering Seasalmon ecology study conducted by the NorthPacific Anadromous Fish Commission, the Bering–Aleutian Salmon International Survey (BASIS)program. The goal of the OCC/BASIS salmonresearch is to understand the mechanisms under-lying the effects of the environment on the distri-bution, migration, and growth of juvenile salmonon the eastern Bering Sea shelf. The primaryobjectives of the survey are to determine theextent of offshore migrations of juvenile salmonfrom rivers draining into the eastern Bering Sea,to describe the physical environment of the epi-pelagic waters along the eastern and northeasternBering Sea shelf occupied by juvenile salmon, andto collect biological information of other ecologi-cally important species.

Results indicate that juvenile salmon are widelydistributed across the eastern Bering Sea shelf;species-specific distributional patterns of juvenilesalmon can exist; distributional patterns are likelyrelated to principal prey sources (for example, age-0 pollock for juvenile sockeye and chum salmon,larval and juvenile sand lance for juvenile chi-nook); size and relative abundance of juvenilesockeye salmon, chum salmon, and age-0 walleyepollock were greatest during 2002 through 2004compared to 2000 and 2001; size of juvenile salm-on is related to marine survival (for example, largerfish have higher marine survival); sea surface tem-peratures have warmed considerably during 2002–2005 compared to 2000 and 2001; and oceano-graphic characteristics can influence distribution,migration pathways, and early marine growth (forexample, warm sea surface temperatures are asso-ciated with offshore distribution and increasedearly marine growth for juvenile sockeye salmon).

Sablefish Longline Survey, 2004–2005. TheAFSC has conducted an annual longline survey ofsablefish and other groundfish in Alaska since1987, a continuation of Japan–U.S. cooperativelongline surveys conducted from 1978 to 1994.The survey is a joint effort involving two AFSCresearch divisions: the Auke Bay Laboratory andthe Resource Assessment and Conservation Engi-neering Division. The continental slope of BeringSea and Aleutian Islands are sampled on alternateyears at depths between 200 and 1000 m. In 2005,20 Bering Sea stations were sampled between 59and 53°N latitude, while in 2004, 21 stations were

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sampled in the Aleutians from 179 to 165°W longi-tude. Sablefish is the most frequently caughtspecies, followed by giant grenadier, shortspinethornyhead, and Pacific cod.

Deep-Sea Coral Distribution and Habitat inthe Aleutian Islands 2004. Two studies were com-pleted in the Aleutian Islands in the summer of2004 on the distribution and habitat of deep seacorals and the associated biological communities.The first study used the piloted submersible Deltain June and July to complete the second and finalphase of a project to assess Aleutian Islands coralhabitat in waters less than 365 m deep (the maxi-mum depth at which the submersible can operate).Scientists visited 10 sites and collected videoof the seafloor on 23 strip transects. Previouslyundocumented beds of sponges, predominantlydemosponges, were documented on an additionalsix dives. More than 150 coral specimens were col-lected for molecular and morphological taxonomicidentification and for studies on reproduction.More than 100 sponge specimens were also col-lected, and 5 of the first 10 specimens analyzedmicroscopically were confirmed as species new toscience.

The second study in late July used the RV RogerRevelle as a support vessel for the remotely oper-ated vehicle (ROV) Jason II, attended by a team ofbiologists, fisheries scientists, and geologists tostudy deep sea coral habitat at depths rangingfrom 131 to 2,948 m in the central Aleutian Islands.Coral and sponge habitat was documented and anumber of deep-water specimens—many new toscience—were collected for ecological and taxo-nomic studies. This cruise was the final compo-nent of a comprehensive study initiated in 2003and funded by NOAA Fisheries, NOAA’s Under-sea Research Program, and the North PacificResearch Board. The team hopes to use their find-ings to construct a model to predict where coralhabitat is located throughout the Aleutian Islandsregion. The model will provide fisheries managerswith a powerful tool to conserve the region’s coralhabitat.

Survey Strategies for Assessment of Bering SeaForage Species, 2005. In June 2005, two researchcruises were conducted in the southeastern Ber-ing Sea, with one group of scientists onboard theF/V Great Pacific targeting offshore waters of thecontinental slope and continental shelf and a sec-ond group of scientists onboard the F/V KemaSue targeting nearshore waters. A third group ofscientists employed lidar and visual surveys froma chartered airplane. The primary objective of this

study was to test a suite of methods for estimatingforage species abundance in the Bering Sea. Aerialsurveys covered 23,125 km; acoustic surveys cov-ered 540 km; 24 stations were completed by theoffshore vessel and included 22 MultiNet (multi-opening zooplankton net) deployments, 18 CTDcasts, 2 ZOOVIS-SC (zooplankton camera) deploy-ments, and 21 midwater trawl deployments; and 18stations were completed by the nearshore vessel,which included 70 beach seine deployments and11 jigging locations.

The dominant forage species catch in the mid-water trawl was northern smoothtongue. Commonforage species were the myctophids, northernlampfish and California headlight fish, squid, andPacific herring. Shallow nearshore stations weredominated by walleye pollock and Pacific herring.

The dominant forage species in nearshore sur-veys was Pacific sand lance; approximately 35,000were captured, and they occurred in 60% of theseine hauls. Other commonly captured forage fishspecies were Pacific sandfish and young-of-the-year gadids. Aerial surveys offshore found asurface layer from 2 to 5 m deep and varying inthickness; net sampling showed that it consistedmainly of large copepods. Patchy, larger targetslay from 8 to 30 m deep and probably extendedbelow attenuation range (30 m). Aerial surveysalso located “hot spots” mainly along the conti-nental shelf break. The hot spots consisted of 3–40 humpback, fin, and sei whales, thousandsof seabirds (mostly shearwaters), concentratedpatchy targets characteristic of fish schools, andobvious foraging activity (for example, bubblefeeding by humpback whales and regurgitatedeuphausiids from shearwaters). These hot spotswere observed on multiple days and appeared tomove northeast along the shelf break at about 20km per day. Fewer signal targets, seabirds, andmarine mammals were located nearshore; however,a few fish schools were visible and may have beensand lance and herring.

Habitat and Ecological Processes ResearchProgram. The AFSC initiated the Habitat and Eco-logical Processes Research (HEPR) program inFebruary 2005 to develop scientific researchthat supports implementation of an ecosystemapproach to fishery management. The HEPRprogram focuses on integrated research studiesinvolving habitat and ecological processes.

An identified research area for the HEPR pro-gram is the Loss of Sea Ice (LOSI) study. Specificresearch questions are: How can AFSC scientistsimprove their understanding of the natural and

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anthropogenic processes in the Bering Sea thatinfluence sea ice thickness, timing, and seasonalextent, and how do changes in sea ice propertiesinfluence living marine resources? How can thisinformation enable more accurate forecasts offuture ecosystem status and trends? How can thisinformation be incorporated into managementadvice and thresholds for regulatory actions?Three LOSI research areas are planned: expandexisting surveys to cover apparent northernmigration of species; create new surveys of ice-dependent species not presently assessed; andacquire the understanding to create spatiallyexplicit models to predict the effects of loss of seaice on fish and marine mammal abundance trends.LOSI funding is scheduled to begin in FY 2008.

National Weather ServiceNOAA’s National Weather Service focuses

mostly on operations and spends the bulk of itsassociated research time collaborating with othersin NOAA and academia. The NWS’s most signifi-cant efforts have involved sponsoring and col-laborating on research associated with coastalerosion and climate change.

The NWS has also collaborated with the Coop-erative Institute for Arctic Research on the devel-opment of the Alaska Regional Integrated Sciencesand Assessments Program, tsunami operationsand research (the Tsunami Warning and Environ-mental Observatory at the University of AlaskaFairbanks), and climate change (including partici-pation in the ACIA report development). They areactive participants in the Alaska Ocean ObservingSystem (AOOS) and have sponsored and/or col-laborated in numerous research and operationalendeavors with other AOOS participants. TheNWS worked with the National Academy of Sci-ence on the requirements and needs associatedwith establishing the Arctic Observing Networkand with International Polar Year (IPY) collabora-tors on potential IPY research activities.

In 2005 the NWS sponsored a workshop in col-laboration with the International Arctic ResearchCenter, Fairbanks, Alaska entitled “Toward anAlaskan Wind/Wave Climatology.” This workshopwas organized as part of an Alaskan sector contri-bution to the NOAA Pacific Regional IntegratedData Enterprise (PRIDE) initiative call for propos-

als that took place in FY 2005. The objective of thisproposal was to initiate work leading to an improvedoperational capacity for predicting coastal erosionand flooding with a demonstration project in placeby IPY (FY 2007–2008). The project’s specific FY2005 objective was to initiate work in support ofthis objective using directed research activity anda workshop. Another important objective at thisstage was to map out linkages with correspondingneeds and activities in Hawaii and the U.S. Pacificregions.

The specific goals for the workshop were toidentify capacity and needs for wave modeling inthe Alaska region, stakeholder requirements, dataavailability, and aspects of the terrestrial zone.Given that relevant experience in many of theseareas is available in various agencies, a wide rangeof participation was solicited from a variety ofFederal, state, academic, and other researchgroups.

Solid links between Alaska, Hawaii, and thebroader Pacific region were identified. Theseincluded:

• Aspects of a conceptual coastal dynamicsmodel framework that can be imported andexported to various regions to build completemodels at all locations;

• Partnerships with the existing Hawaii PRIDEdata teams;

• Guidance from an established template out-lined by the NOAA Pacific Risk Management’Ohana (PRiMO) project (www.csc.noaa.gov/psc/FHMPPI/);

• Inclusion in the Integrated Ocean ObservingSystem initiative;

• Identification of a denser ocean observingnetwork in the Pacific that would greatlyenhance the ability of the Global ForecastSystem to predict the heavy storms that startlife as Pacific typhoons and then curve backto the northeast and can hit Alaska.

This material was summarized at the 2nd PRIDEworkshop in Honolulu, which was held the follow-ing week. At that time, meetings were held withHawaii representatives, and as a result of those, tofurther the integration of Alaska into the NOAAPacific sphere, arrangements are being made withNOAA Hawaii to have the talks, participant lists,and other information related to the Anchorageworkshop placed on a web site hosted in Hawaii.