The 25th International Symposium on Polar Sciences
Araon’s Journey through the Decade:Findings in Ocean, Earth and Paleoclimate ScienceMay 13‐15, 2019Korea Polar Research InstituteIncheon, Republic of Korea

First Circular
The 25th International Symposium on Polar Sciences organized by Korea Polar ResearchInstitute (KOPRI) will be held on May 13‐15, 2019 in Incheon, Republic of Korea. ThisSymposium aims to bring polar scientists together to discuss their research findings andto promote international collaborative research. We cordially invite you to share yourknowledge and perspectives on future outlook in Polar research.

THEMEKorea’s first icebreaking research vessel, Araon, was launched in 2009 and made her
official maiden voyage to the Antarctica in 2010. Since then, she has made a series ofresearch and supply cruises and became one of the world’s busiest research icebreaker,
spending nearly 300 days away at sea every year. With Araon, KOPRI has devoted its
passion and commitment to unveil the mysteries of Polar regions. In commemoration ofthe scientific dedication over the years and celebrating the 10th anniversary of Araon, thetheme of the 25th International Symposium on Polar Sciences will be “Araon’s Journey
through the Decade: Findings in Ocean, Earth and Paleoclimate Science”.

SESSIONS
The following six sessions are proposed;
Response of the Southern Ocean to the Changing Climate
The Southern Ocean plays a critical role in controlling the exchange of heat, carbon andnutrients between the atmosphere, surface and deep oceans. Since this region is highly
under‐sampled for the purpose of assessing the environmental variability, understanding
how the Southern Ocean responds to external forcing is critical to our understanding ofthe climate change. We invite presentations from observational and modeling studies toenhance our understanding of the physical, chemical, and biological processes of theSouthern Ocean, linkages between these processes, ocean‐ice interactions, and responseof these processes and interactions to the changes in climate.
Changing Arctic Ocean: Understanding the impacts of climate changes and theirglobal consequences
The Arctic Ocean is experiencing rapid environmental changes due to rising air and watertemperatures, and loss of sea ice. The rapid environmental changes in the Arctic Ocean
have resulted in ocean circulation changes, freshwater budget changing, the ecosystemand biochemical cycles as well as extreme weather events. How is the Arctic Ocean
environment expected to change in the future under the influence of climate change?
What are the consequences of these changes for biogeochemical cycles in the Arctic andbeyond? How will the ecosystem respond to these changes? This session seeks tounderstand major changes occurring in the Arctic Ocean and the mechanisms
responsible for these changes.
Geological and Geophysical (& Biological) processes in Circum‐Antarctic Ridges
The Circum‐Antarctic Ridges (CAR) occupy about one‐third the length of the global ocean
ridge system, and yet they remain as the least surveyed area because of rough Antarctic
sea conditions. Since 2011, KOPRI went on 4 expeditions and brought back excellent
science results about tectonics, geochemistry and biology. This session provides a forum
to discuss the scientific results obtained from past cruises and the international
collaborations for the future cruises on this remote mid‐ocean‐ridge system.
Rapid change in Arctic sub‐seabed
The warming of the Arctic is causing rapid changes in the Arctic active geologicalprocesses at the seabed. One concern is the potential release of methane fromdecomposing subsea permafrost and the associated permafrost gas hydrates. While ourknowledge of the amount and mobility of methane in this environment is limited, there
is a potential that it could represent a ‘time bomb’ that may influence future globalwarming. This session aims to introduce the latest international research results on therapid changes of the Arctic sub‐seabed and to assert future research priorities that canbe pursued through international collaboration.

Late Quaternary Ocean‐Cryosphere interactions in the Antarctic Ocean
The Antarctic ice sheets and sea ice have repeatedly retreated and advanced on orbital‐
scale during the late Quaternary. The variations in cryosphere influenced surface waterconditions in the Antarctic Ocean, including changes in light intensity/open ocean
duration, primary production, and water mass circulation. Deposition on the Antarctic
Ocean is determined by surface environmental changes in association with changes inocean‐cryosphere interaction. Thus, the sediment core records from the Antarctic
continental slope and rise would provide glacial‐interglacial records on dynamics ofpaleo‐ice sheets and sea ice and their relevant surface water condition changes. In
addition, Antarctic continental shelf records would provide information on how oceanic
condition changed in response to the retreat of ice sheets/shelves since the last glacialperiod. Researches on paleoeanographic changes and paleo‐ice sheet changes using
various proxies in the Antarctic continental margin are welcome in this session.
Past analogue for future Arctic: Glacial and oceanographic perspective
The Arctic Ocean has been subject to rapid and dramatic environmental changes on both
historical and geological time scales that, in turn, modulate the Earth’s climate forcing
such as surface albedo, global overturning circulation, and carbon cycle. All contributions
on paleoceanographic and paleoclimatic variability in the Arctic Ocean are welcome tothis session, particularly those integrating paleo‐records with modern processes andobservation. We aim to advance our knowledge and understating of the Arctic Ocean andits role in the global climate system.

SIDE MEETINGSSouthern Ocean Observing System (SOOS) Meetings
ᆞ Amundsen and Bellingshausen Sector Working Group : May 8‐10, 2019ᆞ Executive Committee : May 13, 2019
ᆞ Data Hack : May 15, 2019
ᆞ Science Steering Committee : May 16‐18, 2019
ᆞ Data Management Sub‐Committee: May 16‐18, 2019Side meetings will be organized during the course of the symposium to provide aplatform for exchanging ideas with experts on appropriate themes as proposed. If you
wish to hold a meeting, please contact us at: symposium@kopri.re.kr

INFORMATIONThe symposium website is currently under renovation. More information including theoverview and preliminary program of the 25th International Symposium on Polar
Sciences will be provided on the symposium website from January 14, 2019.
(http://www.kopri.re.kr/eng/html/sym/060201.html)

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION
Please submit your abstract at the symposium website from January 14 to February 13, 2019 .

REGISTRATION
Registration will be available on the symposium website from February 13 to April 26, 2019 .

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at: symposium@kopri.re.kr
We look forward to your participation.

Ho Il YOONPresident
Korea Polar Research InstituteCoordinators:
Dr. Jong Kuk Hongjkhong@kopri.re.kr

Dr. Sung‐Hyun Park
shpark314@kopri.re.kr

Dr. Hyoung Sul La
hsla@kopri.re.kr

Dr. Young Keun Jin
ykjin@kopri.re.kr

Dr. Eun Jin Yangejyang@kopri.kr

Dr. Sunghan Kim
delongksh@kopri.re.kr

Dr. Jung‐Hyun Kim
jhkim@kopri.re.kr

Secretariat:
Dr. Hyoung Chul Shinhcshin@kopri.re.kr

Mr. Sunhwi Kim
sunhwikim@kopri.re.kr