21 November 2016:
In recognition of the growing importance of Antarctic science and research in global debates, the international community came together in an unprecedented effort to define the highest-priority scientific questions that can be uniquely addressed by studying the region. This process began with the first SCAR Antarctic and Southern Ocean Science Horizon Scan, which identified the most important scientific questions that will or should be addressed by research in and from the southern Polar Regions over the next two decades. This was followed by the Antarctic Roadmap Challenges (ARC) project, led by COMNAP (the Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs) and supported by SCAR, which determined the steps necessary to enable the community to conduct research that will answer the critical questions.
Full results of the ARC project were published in the Antarctic Roadmap Challenges book. As a next step, these results and conclusions have now been summarised in a peer-reviewed article, recently published in the online journal Antarctic Science. The article, “Delivering 21st century Antarctic and Southern Ocean science“, is open access, enabling the widest possible dissemination.