European Geosciences Union
Division on Cryospheric Sciences
President: Olaf Eisen (cr@egu.eu)
Deputy President: Carleen Tijm-Reijmer
(c.h.tijm-reijmer@uu.nl)
The Cryosphere are those parts of the Earth and other planetary bodies that are subject to prolonged periods of temperatures below the freezing point of water. These include glaciers, frozen ground, sea ice, snow and ice. One of the main aims of the EGU Division on Cryospheric Sciences is to facilitate the exchange of information within the science community. It does so by organizing series of sessions at the annual EGU assembly, and through the publishing of the open-access journal `The Cryosphere’. The division awards the Louis Agassiz medal for outstanding contributions to the science of the cryosphere.
The 2018 Louis Agassiz Medal is awarded to Frank Pattyn for his unsurpassed contributions to the understanding of large-scale ice-sheet dynamics and his leadership in the internationally coordinated efforts to improve ice-sheet models.
The 2018 Outstanding Student Poster and PICO (OSPP) Awards is awarded to Fanny Brun Can ice cliffs explain the “debris-cover anomaly”? New insights from Changri Nup Glacier, Nepal
The 2018 Outstanding Student Poster and PICO (OSPP) Awards is awarded to Sandra Vázquez-Martín Ground-based in-situ snowfall speed measurements: Microphysical properties of snowflakes
Every year, humanity understands more and more about a remote and unforgiving component of the Earth system – the cryosphere. 2018 has been no exception, and in this blog post we’ll take a look at some of the biggest scientific findings of cryospheric science in 2018. We will then look forward to 2019 and beyond, to see what the future holds for these rapidly changing climate components. The Cryosphere at 1.5°C warming In 2018, the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate …
Because of global warming and polar amplification, temperature rises twice as fast at the North Pole than anywhere else on the planet. Could that be a problem for our beloved Santa Claus, who, according to the legend, lives there? It appears that Santa could very well have to move to one of its second residences before the end of this century. But even if he moves to another place, the smooth running of Christmas could be in jeopardy… But…. Where …
Some of the most remarkable, marginal features of permafrost – palsas – are degrading and disappearing metre by metre from North European peatlands, and are driven close to extinction by the climate change. What are these permafrost features? A palsa is a peat mound with an icy core, which stays frozen throughout summer due to the insulating property of dry peat. These mounds can rise up to 10 metres above the surface of surrounding mire (wet terrain dominated by peat-forming …
On September 15th, 2018, at 18:02 local time, NASA launched its newest satellite – the second generation Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat-2). ICESat-2 only contains one instrument – a space laser that fires 10,000 pulses per second to Earth to measure elevation. Its primary purpose is for monitoring the ever changing cryosphere, so naturally there are plenty of ice enthusiasts that are excited for the data it will provide! Space laser? The space laser is referred to more …
Happy holidays from the EGU office! This month we are happy to announce a new addition to the EGU awards and medals portfolio. The Katia and Maurice Krafft Award honours researchers who have shown exceptional efforts in geoscience communication and outreach. Submissions for this and other EGU 2020 awards and medals will be accepted from January until 15 June 2019.
This month we also announced that EGU is contributing EUR 132,000 to help fund over 20 training schools and conferences in 2019, including two Galileo Conferences. We have also launched a call for proposals for EGU members interested in organising Galileo Conferences from March 2020 to February 2021. Apply by 28 February 2019 to receive up to EUR 8000 in financial support, as well as significant organisational support, from the EGU.
Follow the links below for more news, including several updates and information regarding the EGU General Assembly. Remember, the deadline for abstracts is 10 January 13:00 CET. Before then, consider renewing your EGU membership to be part of the largest European geosciences union. EGU members are eligible to submit an abstract to the General Assembly and enjoy substantially reduced meeting registration rates, among other benefits.