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普遍；在北半球，大约2500万平方公里的区域以永久冻土层为特征，在南纬30°的高海拔地区也能找到永久冻土层。永久冻土影响着人类和自然系统，如道路、铁路、管道、水质、生态系统功能和恢复。气候变化和高纬度地区（两个半球）资源开发的扩大是近年来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？这次会议还涵盖了广泛的主题，从社会科学到环境再到工程；将讨论永久冻土的所有方面，包括行星永久冻土。科学综合目标之一是将各种学科结合在一起，以解决过去、现在和未来气候下永久冻土景观演变的问题。会议将汇集全球永久冻土研究人员，分享他们的成果和想法，这些成果和想法可能会使我们对永久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。第九届永久冻土国际会议（NICOP）将于2008年6月29日至7月3日（周日至周四）在阿拉斯加大学费尔班克斯校区举行。NICOP标志着第四届国际永久冻土会议（FICOP）和国际永久冻土协会（IPA）成立25周年；这两件事都发生在1983年夏天的阿拉斯加费尔班克斯大学。会议将讨论北方社区面临的永久冻土问题。NICOP将是永久冻土青年研究人员网络的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报告以及美国国家科学院报告的许多发现和建议。迈向北极综合观测系统？为期五天的技术计划将包括全体会议报告、专题和特别会议、海报会议以及实地考察永久冻土状况和相关建设活动。与这次会议一起计划了几项永久冻土课程和讲习班，将向教师、学生和公众开放。本提案提供的资金将有助于为子孙后代编写高质量的会议记录，并为受邀演讲者、学生和年轻研究人员提供旅行援助。OPP/ARC北极研究支持和后勤计划、OPP/ANT南极地球科学计划和GEO/EAR地貌学和土地利用动力学计划资助了这笔资金。

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.