Science Priorities for NSF's Arctic National Sciences Program

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Proposal Number: OPP-9707783 Principal Investigator: Chris Elfring ABSTRACT The National Research Council (NRC), through its Polar Research Board (PRB), proposes to establish a Committee on Science Priorities for NSF's Arctic Natural Sciences Program. The Arctic Natural Sciences Program (ANS), administered by the Arctic Section of NSF's Office of Polar Programs, is a multidisciplinary program that provides grants to support state-of-the-art research in space sciences, atmospheric sciences, biology, geology, glaciology, and oceanography in the Arctic. The program coordinates with related NSF programs and many grants involve collaborations with other agencies and nations. The committee would be charged to gain an understanding of the program's operation and current research priorities and provide guidance on setting future priorities given the diverse scientific issues that fall within the purview of the ANS program. The committee would suggest improvements to the program's management strategy; suggest ways to compare proposals in widely diverse fields; and suggest how to judge which proposals are best-suited for the ANS program versus other, related NSF programs. The committee also would suggest mechanisms to facilitate interagency and international collaborations. The committee would solicit wide input from the arctic research community, perhaps via an electronic mail or other mechanism. The study would be carried out by a committee of approximately 8 experts having a range of experience in the arctic natural sciences, including space sciences (mesosphere and up), atmospheric sciences (including stratosphere), oceanography (including chemical and physical), glaciology (including past climates), biology (including ecology, bio-oceanography, and related areas), and geology/geophysics, as well as the ability to grasp concepts in varied disciplines.