C-DEBI Newsletter – July 16, 2015

C-DEBI Newsletter – July 16, 2015
This newsletter is also accessible via our website.

Publications

Science Advances
High geothermal heat flux measured below the West Antarctic Ice Sheet
Andrew T. Fisher*, Kenneth D. Mankoff, Slawek M.Tulaczyk, Scott W.Tyler, Neil Foley, and the WISSARD Science Team
*C-DEBI Contribution 265

The geothermal heat flux is a critical thermal boundary condition that influences the melting, flow, and mass balance of ice sheets, but measurements of this parameter are difficult to make in ice-covered regions. We report the first direct measurement of geothermal heat flux into the base of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS), below Subglacial Lake Whillans, determined from the thermal gradient and the thermal conductivity of sediment under the lake. The heat flux at this site is 285 ± 80 mW/m², significantly higher than the continental and regional averages estimated for this site using regional geophysical and glaciological models. Independent temperature measurements in the ice indicate an upward heat flux through the WAIS of 105 ± 13 mW/m². The difference between these heat flux values could contribute to basal melting and/or be advected from Subglacial Lake Whillans by flowing water. The high geothermal heat flux may help to explain why ice streams and subglacial lakes are so abundant and dynamic in this region.

Education & Outreach

North Pond: The Search for Intraterrestrials: Full-length Feature Now Up at Vimeo
Winner of best documentary at the 2014 Yosemite Film Festival and an honorable mention at BLUE Ocean Film Festival, North Pond chronicles the drilling activities and installation of seafloor observatories (CORKs) at North Pond on IODP Expedition 336 and was completed as a result of this award. This is the only feature film ever made of an ocean drilling expedition and will provide valuable public exposure to the scientific ocean drilling program (IODP) and C-DEBI.

C-DEBI + College of Exploration: Resources for Community College Instructors Now Available
The College of Exploration was funded by the C-DEBI Small Grants program in 2014 to convene a collaborative team to guide the production of online educational materials and resources integrating deep biosphere research into community college curricula. Now available on our website are the resulting online toolkits kits providing teachers with self-contained activities appropriate to several course subjects in biology and chemistry. C-DEBI research and projects provide exciting and engaging examples of real-world phenomena, data visualizations, illustrations of how scientific procedures learned in class can be applied in the context of research, and case studies of the process of scientific investigation. We hope you and your students gain a new perspective and have fun!

IODP-USSP: Nominate an Ocean Discovery Lecturer
If you or someone you know is interested in becoming an Ocean Discovery Lecturer, email their name, institution, and potential lecture topic to Angela Slagle (aslagle@ldeo.columbia.edu) by the nomination deadline of July 31, 2015. 

The Rolex Scholarships
Currently there are three Rolex Scholarships: North America, Europe, and Australasia. Each Rolex Scholarship provides a hands-on introduction to underwater and other aquatic-related endeavors for a young person considering a career in an underwater-related discipline. Application deadline: December 15, 2015.

The Data Incubator: Data Science Fellowship Opportunity
The next session will be from 09/08/15 to 10/16/15.

Meetings, Workshops and Activities

Call for Abstracts: AGU 2015 Fall Meeting
Remember to submit your AGU abstracts by August 5, 2015. Deep biosphere-related sessions include…

• B027. Connecting single-cell processes to global biogeochemical cycles: a multidisciplinary challenge
  Anne E Dekas, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; Peter R Girguis, Harvard University; Wiebke Ziebis, University of Southern California
• B051. Microbial Growth on Iron: You can’t spell life without Fe
  Heather Fullerton, Western Washington University; Jarrod J Scott, Bigelow Lab for Ocean Sciences
• B088. Uncultured microorganisms and their geochemical roles in deep-sea environments
  Stephanie A Carr, Colorado School of Mines; Jessica Labonté, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, FengPing Wang, Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Mohamed Jebbar, UNIVERSITÉ DE BRETAGNE OCCIDENTALE
• OS012. Follow the fluids: Integrating multi-disciplinary observations of deep-sea hydrothermal systems
  Thibaut Barreyre, WHOI; Jean-Arthur L Olive, Lamont -Doherty Earth Observatory; Jill M McDermott, University of Toronto; Maria G Pachiadaki, Bigelow Lab for Ocean Sciences
• OS014. Interplay between tectonics, oceanography, hydro-thermal circulation and microbial processes in the Gulf of California
  Ivano W Aiello, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories; Ana Christina Ravelo, University of California Santa Cruz; Carlos A Mortera-Gutierrez, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico
• ED008. Climate Literacy in K-12 Classrooms: Challenges, Solutions, and Change
  Patricia Harcourt, University of Maryland Center (UMCES) for Environmental Science; Suseela Remata Reddy, Jackson State University, Sciences and Geoscience; David Finnigan, Climate Change is Elementary
• PP017. Geochemistry and Microbiology of Oxic and Suboxic Deep Sea Pelagic Sediments
  Emily Estes, WHOI; Chloe H Anderson and Ann G Dunlea, Boston University; Claire Cecelia McKinley,Texas A&M University

See also the AGU 2015 Sessions of Interest to the DCO Community, and please contact me (janicak@usc.edu) if you’d like to advertise additional sessions via the C-DEBI mailing list and website.

Proposal Calls

2016-2017 U.S. Core Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program
There is still time to apply for an exciting 2016-2017 U.S. Core Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award in arctic affairs! Opportunities are available for teaching and/or research in nearly every discipline, from engineering to political science, anthropology, communications and more!

NSF: Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER)
See also the FAQ. Full proposal deadlines: July 21-23, 2015.

Simons Foundation, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: 2016 Faculty Scholars Competition
Application deadline: July 28, 2015.

National Academies: Research Associateships for Graduate, Postdoctoral and Senior Researchers
There are four annual review cycles and the next closes August 01, 2015.

IODP: Apply to Sail on Expedition 363 Western Pacific Warm Pool, Expedition 366 Mariana Convergent Margin and Expedition 365 NanTroSEIZE Shallow Megasplay Long-Term Borehole Monitoring System 
The deadline to apply for Expeditions 363 and 366 is August 15, 2015. The Expedition 365 deadline is August 31, 2015.

NSF: Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM)
Full proposal deadline: September 22, 2015.

NSF: Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowships (EAR-PF)
Full proposal deadline: January 12, 2016

NSF: Geobiology and Low-Temperature Geochemistry Program Solicitation
Proposals accepted anytime.

IODP-USSSP: Proposals for Pre-Drilling Activities and Workshops
The U.S. Science Support Program (USSSP) accepts proposals on a rolling basis for pre-drilling activities and semi-annually for workshops, related to the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP).

Employment

University of Leicester: Earth Science Research Associate (IODP & other projects)
Applications are due July 22, 2015. Click here and search on the reference number SEN00623 for more information and to apply.

IODP/Texas A&M: Assistant Research Scientist – Expedition Project Manager/Staff Scientist – Borehole Geophysics
We will begin reviewing applications on September 15, 2015, but will continue to accept applications until candidates are selected for interviews.