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 Ocean Policy Committee Delivers on Strategies and Recommendations to Advance Ocean Exploration. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Director Dr. Kelvin Droegemeier and the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Chairman Mary Neumayr, as Co-chairs of the Ocean Policy Committee (OPC), today announced the release of strategies and recommendations to advance ocean exploration. The documents were developed pursuant to the November 19, 2019, Presidential Memorandum directing Federal agencies to develop a National strategy to map the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the United States,
a strategy to map the Alaskan coastline and recommendations to streamline permitting for ocean exploration and research.
The White House
How US Navy Submarines Carefully Smash Their Way Through Arctic Ice. Before the Navy lets anyone drive a multibillion-dollar submarine, it makes sure they know everything there is to know about handling it. But one skill not in the regular curriculum is how to surface straight up through a heavy sheet of ice. "The vertical surfacing procedure is not a technique that is part of the normal submariner's skill set," Cmdr. Cameron Aljilani, commanding officer of Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine USS Connecticut, said during an interview at the end of May.
Business Insider
US Security Starts in the Arctic. President Donald Trump's June 9, 2020 Memorandum on Safeguarding US National Interests in the Arctic and Antarctic Regions is welcome news to those who have long called for a more robust U.S. presence in the Arctic. The memorandum calls upon five federal agencies to review, assess and execute a "polar security icebreaking fleet acquisition program that supports our national interests in the Arctic and Antarctic regions."
The Hill
 Norway to Develop Nanosatellite for Military Tactical Communication in the Arctic. Radio communication in the High North has been a headache for the armed forces for a long time. A new research project is to test so-called nano satellites in order to solve the problem. "Current satellite systems provide limited coverage in the far north. The goals is to get a new Norwegian system that is fully developed and tested in only two years, says Chief Researcher Lars Erling Bråten at the Norwegian Defense Research Institute (FFI) says in a press release.
High North News
 Russia Submits Seven New Projects to the Arctic Council. A videoconference meeting of the Arctic Council's Sustainable Development Working Group (SDWG) took place on June 8-9, 2020. The Russian delegation included representatives from the Russian Ministry for the Development of the Far East and Arctic. The Russian delegation suggested seven new projects for joint implementation within the SDWG: 1. Arctic Demographic Index (AIM); 2. Digitalization of the linguistic and cultural heritage of the indigenous peoples; 3. The Arctic: Territory, Environment and Culture; 4. The use and demonstration of hydrogen energy in the Arctic (AHEAD); 5. Biosecurity in the Arctic; 6. Sustainable financing in the Arctic; and, 7. Gas hydrates and their role in the sustainable development and climatic transformation of the Arctic.
The Arctic
[Editorial] Together Towards a Sustainable Arctic: One Year Into the 2019-2021 Icelandic Chairmanship. Sustainable development has been at the heart of the Arctic Council's mandate since the Ottawa Declaration was signed in 1996. We chose sustainable development as the Icelandic Chairmanship program theme because in a rapidly changing world, we see the value in remembering our starting point. While no one could have predicted a year ago that the world would be facing a global health crisis today, it is ever more important that sustainable development lights our way, environmentally, socially and economically, as we gradually resume our daily lives after the confinement period has passed. I am proud of the Council's resilience and efforts towards our common goal of a sustainable Arctic.
The Arctic Council
How Does a Greening Arctic Affect Groundwater Recharge? Rising temperatures around the globe are rapidly thawing permafrost, and a fifth of frozen soil underlying tundra around the world could thaw by 2040-even if we take drastic steps to mitigate climate change. As permafrost thaws, landscapes change. In the Tasiapik Valley of northern Quebec, Canada, which lies within the discontinuous permafrost zone, vegetation cover has been increasing since the 1950s. Where open tundra, lichen, and herbs once dominated, shrubs and black spruce forests have expanded as the average temperature has climbed. Previous research showed that the land cover in the region evolves over an estimated 90-year-long period from an "immature" landscape of lichens and herbs underlain by permafrost to a "mature" one of trees and shrubs, without permafrost. In a new study, Young et al. sought to determine how this progression affects groundwater recharge in the region's catchments.
EOS
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Future Events
ICESAT-2 Cryospheric Science Hackweek, June 15-19, 2020 (Virtual). ICESat-2 Cryospheric Science Hackweek is a 5-day hackweek to be held at the University of Washington. Participants will learn about technologies used to access and process ICESat-2 data with a focus on the cryosphere. Mornings will consist of interactive lectures, and afternoon sessions will involve facilitated exploration of datasets and hands-on software development.
3rd Arctic Science Ministerial Research Community Workshops, June 15, 2020 (virtual)
.
Organizers invite participation in an online workshop to discuss topics and ideas that participants think are important for policy makers and the Arctic Science Ministers to better understand and prioritize at the Third Arctic Science Ministerial
(ASM3)
.
Bringing together States, Arctic Indigenous participants, and international organizations, ASM3 aims to take action on coordinated Arctic observing, research, and education in an open and transparent format which includes all Arctic stakeholders.
Alaska Electric Vehicle Workshop, June 16-17, 2020 (Virtual)
.
The first virtual Alaska Electric Vehicle Workshop co-hosted by the
Alaska Center for Energy and Power
and the
U.S. Arctic Research Commission is to be held
June 16-17, 2020 (9 am to 1 pm AKDT)
.
The goal of the workshop is to connect stakeholders and help develop a clearer vision of electric vehicle research and policy priorities for Alaska and the Arctic.
Local, national, and international speakers will engage with each other, as well as  audience members, on topics including vehicle charging behavior,
cold weather performance, electrical grid impacts and policy opportunities.
Registration and workshop details can be found at
here
.
113th meeting of the US Arctic Research Commission, June 22, 2020, 9 am to noon, Alaska Time (Virtual)
. After postponing, the Commission's original 113th meeting, scheduled (for in-person participation
) for March 24, 2020 at the University of Maine, in Orono, ME, USARC has renumbered its meetings, and will now meet virtually, on June 22nd. The three-hour-long meeting will focus on commission business and on an initial discussion of the outline and content of USARC's next publication
"
Report on the Goals and Objectives for Arctic Research 2021-2022 for the US Arctic Research Program Plan.
" The part of the meeting open to the public (from 9:00 am until 10:15 am, Alaska time) will be on commission business. The
remainder of the meeting will not be open to the public, because the discussions on the next goals report
are pre-decisional and deliberative. Details, an agenda, and the URL link to the YouTube live broadcast of the meeting can be found
here
.
Arctic Science Storytelling Webinar With Film Michael Snyder, June 24, 2020 (Virtual). Great stories can change the world, and you have one to tell! Join the Migration in Harmony NSF-Research Coordination Network and our collaborator, award-winning filmmaker Mike Snyder, in this virtual workshop to learn how you should think about your research topics and experiences in the context of a story, how to develop photographer and videographer partnerships, and how to pitch your work to different outlets. The event is hosted by Migration in Harmony. Migration in Harmony: An Interdisciplinary Network in Littoral Species, Settlements, and Cultures on the Move (MiH-RCN) is an international, cross-disciplinary network of Arctic migration researchers funded by the National Science Foundation.
Arctic Circle Assembly, October 8-11, 2020 (Reykjavik, Iceland). The annual Arctic Circle Assembly is the largest annual international gathering on the Arctic, attended by more than 2000 participants from 60 countries. It is attended by heads of states and governments, ministers, members of parliaments, officials, experts, scientists, entrepreneurs, business leaders, indigenous representatives, environmentalists, students, activists and others from the growing international community of partners and participants interested in the future of the Arctic.
3rd Arctic Science Ministerial, November 21-22, 2020 (Toyko, Japan). Since the last Arctic Science Ministerial in 2018, changes in the Arctic ecosystem and the resulting impacts locally and globally have been severely felt. While the reasons for these changes in climate largely stem from activities outside of the Arctic, the Arctic is warming at a rate of nearly double the global average. Considering the need for climate change mitigation, adaptation, and repair measures, the relevance of an international Arctic Science Ministerial has never been greater. It is necessary to strengthen scientific cooperation and collaboration among both Arctic and non-Arctic States in order to develop our understanding of the rapid changes impacting the Arctic. The First Arctic Science Ministerial (ASM1) was hosted by the United States in 2016, and two years later, the Second Arctic Science Ministerial (ASM2) was co-hosted by Germany, Finland, and the European Commission. The Third Arctic Science Ministerial will be co-hosted by Iceland and Japan.
Arctic Science Summit Week, March 20-26, 2021 (Lisbon, Portugal). The Portuguese Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and the Local Organizing Committee will host the Arctic Science Summit Week 2021. The Conference is organized by FCT, Ciência Viva, AIR Center, the Portuguese Arctic Community and by IASC and partners. Framed by the overarching theme for the Science Conference "The Arctic: Regional Changes, Global Impacts," Lisbon invites International experts on the Arctic and Indigenous Peoples to discuss the "New Arctic" and also its impacts and interactions to and with the lower latitudes.
Save the Date: 2nd Symposium on Polar Microbes and Viruses, May 3-6, 2021 (Hanko, Finland). Organizers announce, that due to the coronavirus outbreak, the 2nd Symposium on Polar Microbes and Viruses has been postponed to 2021. This symposium will bring together molecular microbial ecologists specializing in different organism groups to share our latest results and discuss methodological problems, as well as future prospects in the field, including practical international collaborations. The environmental focus will be on cryospheric environments including sea ice, glaciers, ice sheets, and permafrost, but excellent research in other polar environments is also invited. The methods to be discussed will focus on 'omics' techniques, ranging from single cells to metagenomes, but research using additional methods is encouraged as well.
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