The Changing Arctic Ocean: An Introduction to the Special Issue on the International Polar Year (2007–2008)
By Joseph D. Ortiz , Kelly K. Falkner , Patricia A. Matrai , and Rebecca A. Woodgate

SIDEBAR • Arctic Ocean Science and Outreach: A Perspective from the International Polar Year Programme Office
By David Carlson

US Arctic Research Policy
By Kathryn Moran and John W. Farrell

The Holocene History of Nares Strait: Transition from Glacial Bay to Arctic-Atlantic Throughflow
By Anne E. Jennings, Christina Sheldon, Thomas M. Cronin, Pierre Francus , Joseph Stoner, and John Andrews

Paleomagnetism Near the North Magnetic Pole: A Unique Vantage Point for Understanding the Dynamics of the Geomagnetic Field and Its Secular Variations
By Guillaume St-Onge and Joseph S. Stoner

SIDEBAR • The Svalbard REU Program: A High-Latitude Undergraduate Research Experience in Glacial, Marine, and Lacustrine Processes Relevant to Arctic Climate Change
By Steve Roof, Al Werner , Julie Brigham-Grette , Ross Powell , and Mike Retelle

Quaternary Sedimentation in the Arctic Ocean: Recent Advances and Further Challenges
By Leonid Polyak and Martin Jakobsson

SIDEBAR • Research Vessel Sikuliaq
By Margo Edwards and Daniel Oliver

A Synthesis of the Long-Term Paleoclimatic Evolution of the Arctic
By Matthew O’Regan, Christopher J. Williams, Karen E. Frey , and Martin Jakobsson

SIDEBAR • Millennial-Scale Arctic Climate Change of the Last 3.6 Million Years: Scientific Drilling at Lake El'gygytgyn, Northeast Russia
By Julie Brigham-Grette , Martin Melles, Pavel Minyuk , and Christian Koeberl

A Synthesis of Exchanges Through the Main Oceanic Gateways to the Arctic Ocean
By Agnieszka Beszczynska-Möller, Rebecca A. Woodgate , Craig M. Lee , Humfrey Melling, and Michael Karcher

SIDEBAR • The North Pole Environmental Observatory Mooring
By Knut Aagaard and James M. Johnson

Recent Advances in Arctic Ocean Studies Employing Models from the Arctic Ocean Model Intercomparison Project
By Andrey Proshutinsky, Yevgeny Aksenov , Jaclyn Clement Kinney , Rüdiger Gerdes , Elena Golubeva, David Holland , Greg Holloway , Alexandra Jahn , Mark Johnson , Ekaterina Popova, Mike Steele, and Eiji Watanabe

Ocean Warming of Nares Strait Bottom Waters Off Northwest Greenland, 2003–2009
By Andreas Münchow , Kelly K. Falkner, Humfrey Melling, Berit Rabe, and Helen L. Johnson

SIDEBAR • The Best Laid Schemes: A Nares Strait Adventure
By Humfrey Melling

The Ice-Tethered Profiler: Argo of the Arctic
By John M. Toole , Richard A. Krishfield, Mary-Louise Timmermans, and Andrey Proshutinsky

Impact of Wind-Driven Mixing in the Arctic Ocean
By Luc Rainville , Craig M. Lee , and Rebecca A. Woodgate

The Rapid Response of the Canada Basin to Climate Forcing: From Bellwether to Alarm Bells
By Fiona McLaughlin, Eddy Carmack, Andrey Proshutinsky, Richard A. Krishfield , Christopher Guay, Michiyo Yamamoto-Kawai , Jennifer M. Jackson, and Bill Williams

SIDEBAR • A Rosette for Sampling Ice-Covered Water
By William M. Smethie Jr. , Dale Chayes , Richard Perry, Peter Schlosser, and Ronny Friedrich

The Changing Arctic Sea Ice Cover
By Donald K. Perovich

SIDEBAR • Steps Toward an Integrated Arctic Ocean Observational System
By Jean Claude Gascard

Potential Arctic Change Through Climate Amplification Processes
By James E. Overland

The Ocean Carbon Cycle in the Western Arctic Ocean: Distributions and Air-Sea Fluxes of Carbon Dioxide
By Nicholas R. Bates , Wei-Jun Cai , and Jeremy T. Mathis

Sea Ice Biogeochemistry and Material Transport Across the Frozen Interface
By Brice Loose , Lisa A. Miller, Scott Elliott , and Tim Papakyriakou

SIDEBAR • APECS: Nurturing a New Generation of Polar Researchers
By Jenny Baeseman and Allen Pope

Future Arctic Ocean Seasonal Ice Zones and Implications for Pelagic-Benthic Coupling
By Paul Wassmann and Marit Reigstad

Arctic Marine Biodiversity: An Update of Species Richness and Examples of Biodiversity Change
By Bodil A. Bluhm, Andrey V. Gebruk, Rolf Gradinger, Russell R. Hopcroft , Falk Huettmann, Ksenia N. Kosobokova, Boris I. Sirenko, and Jan Marcin Weslawski

SIDEBAR • POLAR-PALOOZA: An International Polar Year Community Outreach Project
By Jackie Richter-Menge

Fluxes, Fins, and Feathers: Relationships Among the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas in a Time of Climate Change
By Michael F. Sigler, Martin Renner , Seth L. Danielson , Lisa B. Eisner, Robert R. Lauth , Kathy J. Kuletz, Elizabeth A. Logerwell , and George L. Hunt Jr.

"The Ocean is Always Changing": Nearshore and Farshore Perspectives on Arctic Coastal Seas
By Ann Fienup-Riordan and Eddy Carmack

A 20-Year Hydroacoustic Time Series of Seismic and Volcanic Events in the Northeast Pacific Ocean
By Robert P. Dziak, Stephen R. Hammond , and Christopher G. Fox

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: A Review of the Planktonic Response
By Raffaela M. Abbriano, Magdalena M. Carranza, Shane L. Hogle, Rachel A. Levin, Amanda N. Netburn, Katherine L. Seto, Stephanie M. Snyder, and Peter J.S. Franks

Holes in Progressively Thinning Arctic Sea Ice Lead to New Ice Algae Habitat
By Sang Heon Lee, C. Peter McRoy, Hyoung Min Joo, Rolf Gradinger , Xuehua Cui , Mi Sun Yun, Kyung Ho Chung , Sung-Ho Kang , Chang-Keun Kang , Eun Jung Choy, Seunghyun Son, Eddy Carmack, and Terry E. Whitledge

QUARTERDECK • A Tribute to Thomas E. Pyle (October 31, 1941–May 28, 2011)
By Ellen S. Kappel

FROM THE PRESIDENT • Arctic Climate Change
By Mike Roman

RIPPLE MARKS • The Gulf of Maine: Between a Rock and a Hard Place?
By Cheryl Lyn Dybas

THE OCEANOGRAPHY CLASSROOM • In Praise of Teaching Assistants
By Tom Garrison

BOOK REVIEW • On Sea Ice
By Peter Wadhams

BOOK REVIEW • Contemporary Issues in Estuarine Physics
By Malcolm Scully

BOOK REVIEW • Among Giants: A Life with Whales
By Kim Shelden

CAREER PROFILES • Options and Insights
Career profiles—Options and insights. 2011. Oceanography 24(3):315–317.

OCEAN POLICY • Black Swans, Wicked Problems, and Science During Crises
By Gary E. Machlis and Marcia K. McNutt

Joseph Ortiz, Kent State University
Kelly Falkner, National Science Foundation
Patricia Matrai, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
Rebecca Woodgate, University of Washington

Production of this issue was supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Science Foundation, and United States Arctic Research Commission.