Date for your diary: International Symposium of Antarctic Earth Sciences 2011

***A selection of speakers will participate in a press conference on Monday 11 July at University of Edinburgh campus***

Over 500 experts in Earth sciences from around the world meet next month in Edinburgh (11-15 July) to discuss the latest scientific research from the Polar Regions. For the first time in over 20 years, the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) is hosting the prestigious conference International Symposium of Antarctic Earth Sciences (ISAES) in the UK.

The Symposium, which is organised and hosted by University of Edinburgh, the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research, British Antarctic Survey and British Geological Survey, will ask big questions about the Polar Regions. How was the supercontinent formed? What life existed millions of years ago and how has it adapted through rainforests and its current cold state? What lies beneath the Antarctica's vast 3km thick ice sheet and what clues does it hold to life on other planets like Mars?

ISAES Committee Chair, Professor Martin Siegert from University of Edinburgh says, "The Polar Regions are natural laboratories for monitoring change. As we enter a changing world we need the best information to understand what the Polar Regions can tell us about Planet Earth and how they are being affected. This meeting will bring together world-leading experts to discuss latest results to advance our understanding the role the Polar Regions play."

Provided by British Antarctic Survey