9312831 Pyle This award supports the Nansen Arctic Drilling Program Secretariat at Joint Oceanographic Institutions Incorporated. Each of ten participating nations is being asked to contribute to support the activities of the Secretariat. The Nansen Arctic Drilling Program (NAD) is a major international research effort designed to understand the geological evolution of the Arctic as well as the history of Arctic environmental change. This knowledge will help predict the future of the Arctic basin and its effect on global processes. NAD is developing strategic plans for acquiring long, high-resolution sediment cores and deep basement cores needed to understand the Cenozoic and Mesozoic paleoceanography, paleobiology, and structural history of the Arctic region. These cores are critical for scientists developing a comprehensive understanding of global change. This ambitious initiative commemorates the pioneering work of Arctic explorer Fridtjof Nansen during the Fram expeditions (1893-1896). ***
