Theme 5 - Cryosphere and Polar Oceans - of the National Centre for Earth Observation (NCEO) is aimed at resolving uncertainties in future climate and sea-level arising from behaviour of the cryosphere. Under this theme, 5 year time series Ice thickness data used by Katharine Giles, Seymour Laxon and Andy Ridout in their paper "Circumpolar thinning of Arctic sea ice following the 2007 record ice extent minimum" (Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 35, L22502, doi:10.1029/2008GL035710, 2008) are presented.

The SAM II instrument, aboard the Earth-orbiting Nimbus 7 spacecraft, was designed to measure solar irradiance attenuated by aerosol particles in the Arctic and Antarctic stratosphere. This dataset collection contains 14 years of polar Arctic and Antarctic aerosol extinction profiles, atmospheric temperature and pressure data obtained from the Stratospheric Aerosol Instrument II (SAM II) on the NIMBUS 7 satellite.

The SAM II instrument, aboard the Earth-orbiting Nimbus 7 spacecraft, was designed to measure solar irradiance attenuated by aerosol particles in the Arctic and Antarctic stratosphere. The scientific objective of the SAM II experiment was to develop a stratospheric aerosol database for the polar regions by measuring and mapping vertical profiles of the atmospheric extinction due to aerosols. This database allows for studies of aerosol changes due to seasonal and short-term meteorological variations, atmospheric chemistry, cloud microphysics, and volcanic activity and other perturbations. The results obtained are useful in a number of applications, particularly the evaluation of any potential climatic effect caused by stratospheric aerosols. This dataset collection contains 14 years of polar Arctic and Antarctic aerosol extinction profiles, atmospheric temperature and pressure data obtained from the Stratospheric Aerosol Instrument II (SAM II) on the NIMBUS 7 satellite.

COBRA (impact of COmbined iodine and Bromine Release on the Arctic atmosphere) is a UK IPY (International Polar Year) consortium that aims to investigate the release mechanisms of iodine in the Arctic and the potential combined effects of iodine and bromine on its atmosphere. The team measured reactive inorganic halogens (BrO, IO, OIO, I2), O3, Hg, HOx, HCHO, NOx, VOCs and reactive halocarbons from temporary laboratories located on the eastern shore of Hudson Bay, north of Kuujjuarapik, during February-March 2008. Met balloons and O3 sondes were launched daily. COBRA set up an ice camp and flux chamber experiments ~500 m into the bay to directly measure halogen emissions and ozone deposition, and measured physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the sea-ice (and potentially of frost flowers) at different depths. The project is linked with OOTI, which carried out a simultaneous field experiment at Kuujjuarapik. The dataset measurements come from the British Antartic Survey (BAS) Frost Flower Specific Surface Area (SSA) using a Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area measurement apparatus.

COBRA (impact of COmbined iodine and Bromine Release on the Arctic atmosphere) is a UK IPY (International Polar Year) consortium that aims to investigate the release mechanisms of iodine in the Arctic and the potential combined effects of iodine and bromine on its atmosphere. The team measured reactive inorganic halogens (BrO, IO, OIO, I2), O3, Hg, HOx, HCHO, NOx, VOCs and reactive halocarbons from temporary laboratories located on the eastern shore of Hudson Bay, north of Kuujjuarapik, during February-March 2008. Met balloons and O3 sondes were launched daily. COBRA set up an ice camp and flux chamber experiments ~500 m into the bay to directly measure halogen emissions and ozone deposition, and measured physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the sea-ice (and potentially of frost flowers) at different depths. The project is linked with OOTI, which carried out a simultaneous field experiment at Kuujjuarapik.

COBRA (impact of COmbined iodine and Bromine Release on the Arctic atmosphere) is a UK IPY (International Polar Year) consortium that aims to investigate the release mechanisms of iodine in the Arctic and the potential combined effects of iodine and bromine on its atmosphere. The team measured reactive inorganic halogens (BrO, IO, OIO, I2), O3, Hg, HOx, HCHO, NOx, VOCs and reactive halocarbons from temporary laboratories located on the eastern shore of Hudson Bay, north of Kuujjuarapik, during February-March 2008. Met balloons and O3 sondes were launched daily. COBRA set up an ice camp and flux chamber experiments ~500 m into the bay to directly measure halogen emissions and ozone deposition, and measured physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the sea-ice (and potentially of frost flowers) at different depths. The project is linked with OOTI, which carried out a simultaneous field experiment at Kuujjuarapik.