Support for the Ninth International Conference on Permafrost (NICOP), Fairbanks, Alaska

永久冻土的范围比人们通常认识到的更为广泛;在北方大约有2500万平方公里的地区是永久冻土区，在高海拔地区，可以在远至北纬30度的南部找到永久冻土。永久冻土影响到人类建造的和自然的系统，如公路、铁路、管道、水质和生态系统的功能和恢复。气候变化和高纬度地区（两个半球）资源开发的扩大是最近对永久冻土科学和工程重新产生兴趣的催化剂。会议的主题是？全球变暖的永久冻土：对生态系统、基础设施和气候的影响？本次会议还涵盖了广泛的主题，从社会科学到环境工程;永久冻土的各个方面都将得到解决，包括行星永久冻土。科学综合目标之一是将各种学科聚集在一起，以解决过去，现在和未来气候下的永久冻土景观演变问题。该会议将汇集全球冻土研究人员社区，分享他们的成果和想法，这些成果和想法可能会导致我们对冻土及其在极地地区的作用的理解取得新的进展，影响地质学，生物学，水文学和相关系统。第九届国际冻土会议（NICOP）将于2008年6月29日至7月3日（星期日至星期四）在阿拉斯加大学费尔班克斯校园举行。NICOP标志着第四届国际冻土会议（FICOP）和国际冻土协会（IPA）成立25周年;两者都于1983年夏天在费尔班克斯的阿拉斯加大学举行。会议将讨论北方社区面临的冻土问题。NICOP将是永久冻土青年研究人员网络200名成员中的许多人第一次有机会见面，并为新一代永久冻土研究人员制定自己的计划。会议结果将支持美国北极研究委员会关于永久冻土的报告、ACIA和ICARP II报告以及国家科学院报告的许多发现和建议。建立北极综合观测系统？为期五天的技术计划将包括全体会议，同时专题和特别会议，海报会议，实地考察，以查看永久冻土条件和相关的施工活动。计划结合这次会议举办若干永久冻土课程和讲习班，并将向教师、学生和公众提供。通过本提案提供的资金将有助于为子孙后代制定高质量的程序，并为受邀演讲者、学生和年轻调查人员提供旅行援助。该基金由美国南极研究中心/ARC北极研究支持和后勤计划、美国南极研究中心/ANT南极地球科学计划和地球观测组织/地球观测组织地貌学和土地利用动态计划赞助。

Permafrost extent is more pervasive than often realized; an area of approximately 25 million square kilometers in the northern hemisphere is characterized by permafrost, and permafrost can be found as far south as 30°N at high altitudes. Permafrost affects both human-built and natural systems, such as roads, railroads, pipelines, water quality and ecosystem function and restoration. Climate change and expanded resource development in the high latitudes (both hemispheres) has been the catalyst for recent renewed interest in permafrost science and engineering. The main conference theme is ?Permafrost on a Warming Planet: Impacts on Ecosystems, Infrastructure and Climate?. This conference also covers a wide breadth of themes, from social science to environmental to engineering; all aspects of permafrost will be addressed, including planetary permafrost. One of the scientific synthesis goals is to bring a wide variety of disciplines together to address questions of permafrost landscape evolution under past, present and future climates. The conference will bring together the worldwide community of permafrost researchers to share their results and ideas in ways that could lead to new advances in our understanding of permafrost and its role in polar regions, influencing geology, biology, hydrology and related systems. The Ninth International Conference on Permafrost (NICOP) will take place on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus during the week of June 29-July 3 (Sunday through Thursday), 2008. NICOP marks the 25th anniversary of the Fourth International Conference on Permafrost (FICOP) and the formation of the International Permafrost Association (IPA); both took place at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks in the summer of 1983.Conference sessions will address permafrost problems facing northern communities. NICOP will be the first opportunity for many of the 200 members of the Permafrost Young Researchers Network to meet and develop their own plans for this new generation of permafrost researchers. Conference results will support many of the findings and recommendations of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission report on permafrost, the ACIA and ICARP II reports, and the National Academy of Sciences report ?Toward an Integrated Arctic Observing System?. The five-day technical program will consist of plenary presentations, simultaneous topical and special sessions, poster sessions, and field trips to view permafrost conditions and related construction activities. Several permafrost courses and workshops are planned in conjunction with this Conference and will be available to teachers, students and the public. Funds through this proposal will assist in developing high-quality proceedings for posterity and providing travel assistance for invited speakers, students, and young investigators. The OPP/ARC Arctic Research Support and Logistics Program, OPP/ANT Antarctic Earth Sciences Program and GEO/EAR Geomorphology and Land-Use Dynamics program sponsored this grant.