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Announcements

BE-Polar Conference 2025: Registration and Call for Abstracts Open!

Belgian Polar Day will take place on Thursday, September 11th! The day-long event, hosted at Usquare in Brussels, will bring together researchers from many different scientific disciplines to celebrate the diversity and richness of Belgian polar science, explore its relevance in global environmental and geopolitical contexts, and foster new collaborations across fields.

BE Polar Day Hero image

Belgian Polar Day will take place on Thursday, September 11th! The day-long event, hosted at Usquare in Brussels, will bring together researchers from many different scientific disciplines to celebrate the diversity and richness of Belgian polar science, explore its relevance in global environmental and geopolitical contexts, and foster new collaborations across fields.

The event will feature plenary sessions setting the stage with cross-disciplinary and policy-relevant perspectives on polar research

There will be parallel thematic sessions on:

Ice, Ocean and their Interactions
Atmospheric Science
Continental Cryosphere: Observations and Modelling (includes the biological sciences)
Human Health, Socio-Economic and Geopolitical Aspects and Outreach

There will also be a dedicated poster session and best poster award for early-career researchers, a closing plenary on the future of Belgian polar science, an evening food truck, and ample networking opportunities!

A surprise cultural activity will close the day – featuring a live concert by a very special band: the Broes! This will be your chance to see their only Brussels concert this year for their latest album BELGICA, so don’t miss it!,

Registrations are open from now until August 24th, 23:50 CEST. A participation fee of 20€ will be asked (meal and evening cultural activity included with participation fee).

Attendees are invited to submit an abstract to present their work either through oral presentations within these parallel sessions or via a poster, for which there will be a dedicated time slot at the end of the day. Abstracts must be submitted by June 30th, at 23:50 CEST.

For more information about the event and how to register, please visit the event website.

Only 130 places are available, so make sure to register today!

We look forward to seeing everyone in the wider Belgian polar research community there!

The BE-Polar Conference 2025 Committee: François Massonnet, David Docquier, Coraline Leseurre, Mieke Sterken, Marie Cavitte, Louise Delhaye.

This event is organized by the Belspo-funded research project RESIST, APECS-Belgium and the International Polar Foundation. It is supported by BELSPO, BNCA2R, and Usquare.brussels (VUB-ULB).

BE Polar Day Hero image

BE-Polar Conference 2025: Registration and Call for Abstracts Open!

Belgian Polar Day will take place on Thursday, September 11th! The day-long event, hosted at Usquare in Brussels, will bring together researchers from many different scientific disciplines to celebrate the diversity and richness of Belgian polar science, explore its relevance in global environmental and geopolitical contexts, and foster new collaborations across fields.

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Alain in front of PEA - teaser for Cryosphere Pavillion at UNOC3

Alain Hubert to speak at Cryosphere Pavillion in Lead Up to UN Ocean Conference in Nice

On Thursday, June 5th, IPF Founder and President Alain Hubert will give a presentation at the Cryosphere Pavilion in the lead-up to the start of the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France.

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LTAFA winners 2022-24

Announcing the 4th Annual Laurence Trân Arctic Futures Award Call for Submissions

For the fourth consecutive year, the International Polar Foundation and the Trân Family Foundation are pleased to announce that the call for submissions for the annual Laurence Trân Arctic Futures Award has opened.

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Craig Masson at PEA

IPF Mourns the Loss of Nine-Year Veteran of BELARE Missions

It is with great sadness that we must communicate with the BELARE community that one of our team members, Craig Masson, passed away on Friday the 16th of May, following an accident at work.

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Ratnakar Gadi and Eric Rignot from UC Irvine pose with a radar seldge they used to image the King Baudoin Ice Shelf

Eric Rignot: Investigating the Melt of the King Baudouin Ice Shelf

Prof. Eric Rignot from UC Irvine discusses his work following a successful field campaign on the King Baudouin Ice Shelf in East Antarctica during the 2024-25 BELgian Antarctic Research Expedition (BELARE).

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Ratnakar Gadi, a doctoral student in Earth system science, was the first to defend a dissertation at the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica research station

Defending a Doctoral Thesis in Antarctica

 Graduate student Ratnakar Gadi from UC Irvine’s Department of Earth System Science made history by successfully defending his Ph.D. dissertation in an extraordinary setting—Belgium’s Princess Elisabeth Antarctica. It was only the second thesis defense ever conducted from Earth’s southernmost continent.

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2050 red carpet premiere 27 February 2025

2050 Makes Big Impression at First Screenings

The soon-to-be-released film 2050 by renowned filmmakers Eric Goens and Kristoff Van Den Bergh financed by Syensqo has been shown in a few locations to much acclaim prior to its official release date of March 5th in cinemas across Belgium.

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Alain in the field

2050: A film by Eric Goens and Kristof Van Den Bergh - Will the world listen before it’s too late?

Wildfires in California, floods in Spain and the Ardennes, Hurricane Hélène leaving a trail of destruction across the United States… The climate record of 2024 is devastating: the hottest year ever recorded, with 219 officially registered weather disasters and thousands of victims.

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Rising station's annexes

Last days at PEA before departure

BELARE 2024-25 is drawing to a close. Preparations are being made to put the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica into winter mode and pack away scientific equipment.

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Drilling a hole in the King Baudoin Ice Shelf to take CDT measurements

Last week for scientists this season

This week the four remaining scientific teams for this season - EXPOSOILS, PASPARTOUT, NISAR, and EPFL-CRYOS - wrapped up their work and started preparing for their flight home, which is scheduled for Friday, February 14th.

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