An ad hoc NRC committee will plan a workshop to bring together Antarctic sea ice experts to review the current science for climate-ocean-ice interactions in the Southern Hemisphere, with an outlook back 50 years and an emphasis on the record extents observed in the last 3 years. Workshop participants will be asked to discuss the processes governing decadal-scale growth and recent surge in Antarctic sea ice extent, discuss projections of future Antarctic sea ice changes, and consider how to improve our understanding of current and future Antarctic sea ice changes.
Specific topics to be addressed at the workshop include:
1. Observations of changes in Antarctic sea ice and the broader Antarctic environment

• What have we learned from the satellite data record?
• What have we learned from available in situ and proxy data records?
• How can we extend the satellite time series back in time (e.g., using pre-1979 satellite data, ship observations, other proxies)?
• What do we need to improve satellite validation of Antarctic sea ice concentration, thickness, snow cover?
• What new satellite observations would help improve our understanding?
• What new in situ and proxy observations would help improve our understanding?

2. Process-based studies of changes in Antarctic sea ice and the broader Antarctic environment

• What have we learned from process-based studies?
• What have we learned about feedbacks in the ice-ocean-atmosphere system and how they may be contributing to the growing sea ice cover?
• What additional process-based studies could improve our understanding?

3. Models of changes in Antarctic sea ice and the broader Antarctic environment

• What have we learned from sea ice and climate models?
• What are the best projections of future Antarctic sea ice?
• What types of data synthesis and field experiments are needed for improving sea ice and climate models?
• What types of focused model intercomparisons could help address model discrepancies?
• What is needed to improve the forcing fields in Antarctica to improve modeled simulations?

The committee will plan and organize the workshop, select and invite speakers and discussants, and moderate the discussions. An individually authored summary of the presentations and discussions at the workshop will be prepared by a designated rapporteur in accordance with institutional guidelines.