Polar

a swim diver in water with ice above their head
Researcher dives under diatom-coated sea ice in the Ross Sea

Credit: Aaron Toh; courtesy of Amy Osborne (PolarTREC 2019)

direction signs in Palmer Station Antarctica
From NSF’s Palmer Station in Antarctica, everywhere is a long way off. Nestled in a protected harbor off the Antarctica Peninsula, it hosts constant scientific research, and a webcam.

Credit: Ken Keenan

Sunset at Palmer Station, Anvers Island

Credit: Kelly Jaques

NSF funded an Arctic research cruise aboard the R/V Sikuliaq in September 2016 with scientific teams from Oregon State University and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

Credit: Kimberly Kenny

Castle Rock, a natural geologic landmark near McMurdo Station in Antarctica

Credit: Joshua Swanson; Source: U.S. Antarctic Program photo library

glaciers
Glaciers converge on northeast Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. The ice rivers are revealing insights into what caused Earth’s Little Ice Age more than seven centuries ago.

Credit: Gifford H. Miller, INSTAAR, University of Colorado Boulder

Antarctic
A lone tent lies beneath the nighttime sky above the Antarctic Peninsula.

Credit: J. Meng, American Museum of Natural History

Antarctica
A fossil-hunting field camp nestles against the distant sea on the Seymour and Vega islands in Antarctica.

Credit: J. Meng, American Museum of Natural History

ice harbor in Palmer Station Antarctica
This scene captures the stark beauty of Arthur Harbor near NSF’s Palmer Station in Antarctica.

Credit: Perri Barbour