The Polaris Project: Rising Stars in the Arctic and Amplifying the Impact, www.thepolarisproject.org
Funding Agency: NSF Office of Polar Programs, Arctic Natural Sciences Program, Arctic Research and Education Program , and Division of Undergraduate Education
Collaborators: R. Holmes (Woods Hole Research Center), S. Zimov (Northeast Science Station, Russia), A. Bunn (Western Washington University), S. Chandra (University of Nevada, Reno), J. Schade (St. Olaf College), W. Sobczak (College of the Holy Cross)
Funding Period: 2007-2017
The allure and mystique of the Arctic, combined with its central role in the global warming issue, make it the ideal place to capture the imagination of the public while engaging students and early career scientists in interdisciplinary polar research and education. The Polaris Project is a multifaceted effort that includes: a field course and research experience for undergraduate students in the Siberian Arctic; several new arctic-focused undergraduate courses taught by project co-PIs at their respective colleges across the United States and in Russia; the opportunity for co-PIs to initiate research programs in the Siberian Arctic; and a wide range of outreach activities. The unifying scientific theme of the Polaris Project is the transport and transformations of carbon and nutrients as they move with water from terrestrial uplands to the Arctic Ocean. This is a central issue in arctic system science and the Polaris Project will train future leaders in arctic research and education, and educate the public, both of which are essential given the rapid and profound changes underway in the Arctic in response to global warming.
Resulting Publications: *Ph.D. student author, **M.S./M.A. student author, ***B.A. student author
Frey, K. E., W. V. Sobczak, P. J. Mann & R. M. Holmes (2016), Optical properties and bioavailability of dissolved organic matter along a flow-path continuum from soil pore waters to the Kolyma River mainstem, East Siberia. Biogeosciences 13, 2279–2290, doi:10.5194/bg-13-2279-2016 (12 pp.). pdf copy
Schade, J. D., E. C. Seybold, T. Drake, W. V. Sobczak, K. E. Frey, R. M. Holmes & N. Zimov (2016), Variation in summer nitrogen and phosphorus uptake among Siberian headwater streams. Polar Research 35, 24571, http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/polar.v35.24571 (10 pp.). pdf copy
Broderick, D. E.**, K. E. Frey, J. Rogan, H. D. Alexander & N. S. Zimov (2015), Estimating upper soil horizon carbon stocks in a permafrost watershed of Northeast Siberia by linking field measurements to Landsat-5 TM and WorldView-2 satellite data. GIScience and Remote Sensing, doi:10.1080/15481603.2015.1010434 (27 pp.). pdf copy
Denfeld, B. A.**, K. E. Frey, W. V. Sobczak, P. J. Mann & R. M. Holmes (2013), Summer CO2 evasion from streams and rivers in the Kolyma River basin, north-east Siberia. Polar Research 32, 19704, http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/polar.v32i0.19704 (15 pp.). pdf copy
Tank, S. E., K. E. Frey, R. G. Striegl, P. A. Raymond, R. M. Holmes, J. W. McClelland & B. J. Peterson (2012), Landscape-level controls on dissolved carbon flux from diverse catchments of the circumboreal. Global Biogeochemical Cycles 26, GB0E02, doi:10.1029/2012GB004299 (15 pp.). pdf copy
Griffin, C. G.***, K. E. Frey, J. Rogan & R. M. Holmes (2011), Spatial and interannual variability of dissolved organic matter in the Kolyma River, East Siberia observed using satellite imagery. Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences 116, G03018, doi:10.1029/2010JG001634 (12 pp.). pdf copy
Frey, K. E. & J. W. McClelland (2009), Impacts of permafrost degradation on arctic river biogeochemistry. Hydrological Processes 23, 169–182. pdf copy
Holmes, R. M., K. E. Frey & S. A. Zimov (2009), A Field Course in the Siberian Arctic: 30 Days, 20 People, 3 Continents, 1 Barge. Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union 90, 222–223. pdf copy