Report on IASC CWG at ASSW 2022
Reported by Teruo AOKI (NIPR), Nozomu TAKEUCHI (Chiba University)
Related research program: Cryosphere
The annual meeting of the Cryosphere Working Group (CWG) of the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) was held in a hybrid meeting at the University of Tromsø, Norway, on 24-25 March 2022, during the Arctic Science Summit Week 2022 (ASSW2022). In the open session on the first day, the chair gave an overview of CWG activities, including updates of the Polar Resource Book, Arctic Science Report, CWG scientific foci, ICARP IV and the CWG budget. The ten proposals for cross-cutting activities (4 new proposals and 6 resubmitted proposals) and the IASC State of Arctic Science Report were discussed, for both of which generally positive comments were given. The Chair also explained the need to update Polar Science and Global Climate, the introduction of Cryosphere 2020, which was postponed to 2022, the IASC Network on Arctic Glaciology, and the launch of a working group on snow cover. Next, the ongoing efforts for COVID-19 were discussed, including the advantages (CO2 reduction and economic benefits, etc.) and disadvantages (lack of networking opportunities for young researchers) of online meetings and the impact on field observations. In the closed session on the second day, the CWG Foci (scientific activity goals) were discussed and the following four goals were approved: 1) understanding the actual state of the cryosphere; 2) understanding snow/ice melting and interactions with other domains in the earth system; 3) quantification and prediction of extreme snow/ice phenomena; 4) understanding interactions between the cryosphere and human society. From the discussion for funding allocation in 2022, it was decided to provide the budget for the ten cross-cutting project proposals as requested. Finally, Shawn Marshall (Canada) was elected as a chair for the next term.