Invitation to symposium: “The Arctic Climate system; its present status, future evolution and potential impacts”

Invitation to symposium: “The Arctic Climate system; its present status, future evolution and potential impacts”
The Damocles consortium and the DG Research of the European Commission invite all Arctic experts interested in participating to a Symposium in Brussels November 10-12 2009.
Photo: Erlend Hermansen

This symposium is intended to describe near future scientific and technological challenges for a better understanding of the Climate system at a time of human-induced rapid environmental changes. 

This description will be based on current results from Damocles and other IPY projects. 

There will be 8 plenary scientific sessions. Each session will be introduced by keynote speakers. 

November 10, 2009

Session 1: How is the Arctic cryosphere changing (Sea-Ice, Permafrost, Ice sheets)

Session 2: Changing circulation, energy and fresh water budgets in atmosphere & ocean

Session 3: Small-scale physical processes and their representation in climate models. 

November 11, 2009

Session 4: Operational forecsating and re-analysis

Session 5: New observational techniques

Session 6: From expeditions to a network: How to integrate ongoing field work into
a sustainable focussed network? 

November 12, 2009

Session 7: Predictability on seasonal, decadal and climate time scales

Session 8: Projections of the Arctic future climate and its consequences for the carbon cycle, ecosystems and for human society. 

Press conference: Declaration

A press conference is scheduled for the last day with a declaration signed by number of scientists expressing their concerns and also their wishes for future Arctic Research.

Please respond to Laetitia (laetitia.nitkiewicz@locean-ipsl.upmc.fr) and to Elena (Elena.Billi@upmc.fr) for registration as soon as possible. There will be a limited number of seats (200). There will be a possibility to present posters during extended breaks. Each plenary session will be limited to 2.5 hours (3 hours maximum). 

A projection of the award-winning television documentary "Tara - Journey to the Heart of the Climate Machine" coproduced with the European Commission DG Research, will be organised with the possibility for the public to meet Arctic scientists as well as the film director and producers.