BIPOMAC
in scheme: projects
definition: Short Title: BIPOMAC Project URL: http://www.polarjahr.de/BIPOMAC.100+M52087573ab0.0.html Proposal URL: http://classic.ipy.org/development/eoi/proposal-details.php?id=130 Paleoclimatic research indicates that processes and conditions in polar regions play a large role in driving and amplifying global climate variability at centennial to millenial time scales. The outstanding role of polar regions in the global climate system is currently evidenced by the distinct warming of polar regions (e.g. Arctic realm, Antarctic Peninsula) that exceed modern warming on a global scale. Polar processes and conditions include biological cycling and physical circulation in the polar oceans, the formation and distribution of sea ice, the behavior of permafrost areas, atmospheric circulation and transport of water vapor, and the volume and stability of continental ice. Polar and subpolar High-Nutrient-Low-Chlorophyll (HNLC) areas may act as CO2 sinks during glacial periods when the increased input of the micronutrient, iron, stimulates primary production. The extent and the seasonal variability of sea ice influences the Earth's albedo, water mass production, heat and gas exchange between the ocean and atmosphere, and biological productivity. Melt water pulses, which alter surface ocean density gradients, may induce rapid climate change. The impact of such environmental events in the Arctic Ocean, North Atlantic, and Southern Ocean may propagate globally via ocean circulation, through the operation of the "bipolar seesaw". New data suggest a less stable Antarctic ice volume than generally presumed, even during cold periods, and shed new light on the vulnerability of the Antarctic ice sheets and their effect on global ocean circulation and sea level change. What is needed now is determined investigation of these diverse processes so a sophisticated picture of the power of polar regions to drive climate change can be assembled. The international and multidisciplinary effort within the p…
type: Concept

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type: Concept