Introductory Videos
Mark Twickler - Manager
Manager at the Climate Change Research Center, University of New Hampshire. I assist with the operation of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide Ice Core Project (WAIS Divide) Science Coordination Office (SCO) which is drilling a 3,400-foot ice core during the International Polar Year(s) of 2007-2009. Once the core is drilled it will be sent to the National Ice Core Lab (NICL) in Boulder, Colorado. I will help with the planning and sampling of the ice core as well as the distribution of samples to scientists who will conduct various tests in order to gain a better understanding of the climate history of the Earth.
Joe Souney - Operations Manager
I am a Project Manager at the Climate Change Research Center where I help operate the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide Ice Core Project (WAIS Divide) Science Coordination Office (SCO).
West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) Divide is a United States deep ice coring project in West Antarctica funded by the National Science Foundation. WAIS Divide's goal is to examine the last ~100,000 years of Earth's climate history by drilling and recovering a deep ice core from central West Antarctica.
Snow that falls on the ice sheet is buried by subsequent snow and forms the layers of ice that make up the ice sheet. The ice layers contain dissolved chemicals, insoluble dust particles, and atmospheric gases that were present when the snow fell. By drilling down into the ice sheet and recovering ice from ancient times it is possible to determine the climate conditions when the snow fell. The ice layers contain a record of how the climate changed. This allows us to determine how and why climate changed in the past. By understanding how and why climate changed in the past, we are able to improve predictions of how climate will change in the future.
Zach Smith - Research Associate/Educational Outreach
Zach is a former Earth Science teacher. Now living in Maine with his wife and two daughters.
A passion for all places snowy, Zach has worked with the Juneau Icefield Research Program through the University of Idaho, the University of New Hampshire's Climate Change Research Center, and the Institute for Quaternary and Climate Studies at the University of Maine. During the 2000-2001 field season Zach was in Antarctica as a member of the US International Trans-Antarctic Scientific Expedition team. Also, during the IPY in 2007-2008 field season Zach will be in Antarctica as a member of the WAIS Divide ice coring program team. All of this fieldwork has helped Zach to develop the basis for an earth science curriculum based on climate change. If you like, you can take a look at Zach's resume.
In his former life, Zach was a geology major at Susquehanna University, a graduate student in Earth Sciences at the University of Northern Colorado, and an oilfield geologist in the west before moving to New England in 1988 and starting his teaching career.
Zach currently directs the 3-d Quadrat Program and its accompanying teacher workshops on environmental change.
Scott Battaion - Research Associate/Educational Outreach/Media Coordinator
I am Media Coordinator for the WAIS Divide Outreach Program and also hold the same position at the Wright Center for Innovative Science Education at Tufts University. I am a former Wright Fellow and have worked in many aspects of multimedia production at the Wright Center for the last 10 years.
During the past 25 years I have held various positions in natural resource management, science education, and multimedia production. As a forest ranger I participated in numerous activities ranging from field research to environmental education. Most recently I have worked as an academic fellow and media coordinator at the Wright Center where I participate in the development a wide range of educational projects from astronomy to environmental science to climate change.
I took my A.A. degree in Forestry with an emphasis in photography, my B.A. was earned in Environmental Studies with a concentration in photography, and my M.A. focused on instructional technology and long/short term memory. My current science education credential includes certifications to teach the following subject areas: biology, physical science, earth science, general science, forestry, horticulture, photography, and mathematics.
I will be deployed to Antarctica during the 2008-09 field season of the International Polar Year. I can't wait get into the field and create interesting and engaging educational materials (blog, podcasts, photos, video, etc.) related to the WAIS Divide ice coring project, so stay tuned!