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| | The Poles and You
The Arctic in the far north and Antarctica down south may seem remote and distant from where most of us live. But they are a crucial part of the Earth system. Changes in the Arctic and Antarctic affect weather and climate everywhere on Earth, and satellites show us the poles are changing faster than anywhere else on the planet. Understanding the poles helps us to better understand global climate change.
Polar-palooza is an International Polar Year (IPY) education and outreach project, supported by both the National Science Foundation and NASA, taking polar researchers and Arctic residents on the road to science centers and natural history museums throughout 2007 and 2008, for the “Stories from a Changing Planet” national tour. Our presenters know both poles intimately because they’ve lived and worked there, in some of the most extreme, fascinating and beautiful locations on Earth. In Fall 2007, Polar-palooza will visit California, New Mexico, Florida, Georgia and Louisiana. (Check back later this year for 2008 cities and dates.)
Polar-palooza's “High Definition Video Science Story Capture Corps” (“HDvCC” for short) is a squad of videographers who will accompany researchers on expeditions to both the Arctic and Antarctica. In 2007, they’ll tape in Alaska, out on the sea ice north of Prudhoe Bay, at the North Pole, and in Greenland.
Podcasts, Blogs, and More
Polar-palooza will publish a series of video and audio podcasts throughout IPY, with short video bulletins (“vlogs”) sent back from the HDvCC taping trips. Scientists and Alaskan indigenous peoples will speak for themselves in blogs, accompanied by images of sea, ice, land, animals and people.
Break the Ice: An Invitation to Get Active and Interactive
Videos of penguins and polar bears, glaciers and ice-breakers, plus NASA images and animations of the poles from space will be accessible for download. Soon we'll invite students to mash-up and re-mix the videos to compete in the Polar-palooza podcast contest. Judges will consider scientific accuracy and production values. Check back soon for details!
The Polar-palooza Portal
Of course, we’ll also link to the best U.S. and international IPY sites and resources along with hands-on activities for school, home or science center, and other exemplary podcasts, wikis, and projects.
International Polar Year: March 2007-March 2009
During IPY, more than 50,000 researchers from 60 nations will set out via plane, ship, snowmobile and dog sled, and use satellites high in space, to explore the poles. This is the fourth Polar Year but the first of the Internet age. Starting now, anyone can accompany the researchers to the very ends of the Earth via podcasts and streaming video.
Sponsors
Polar-palooza is an official IPY activity made possible by support from the National Science Foundation and NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. Polar-palooza is produced by Passport to Knowledge (P2K), which is solely responsible for its content.
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Polar-Palooza Vodcasts
Polar-Palooza videos.
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NASA Polar Express
Quick access to IPY multimedia.
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