Message from the Director - Fall 2008

As part of its internal strategic planning, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently evaluated its long-term commitment to operate the National Ice Core Laboratory (NICL). NICL, operated jointly by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the USGS, was one of a number of facilities, programs, and activities internally reviewed by USGS in an effort to refine its mission and the strategic science directions of USGS and its government parent, the Department of Interior. We are pleased to report (see story of page 7) that the USGS intends to continue the operation of NICL for the foreseeable future. The USGS and NSF are currently in negotiations regarding the future joint operations of NICL.

As a reminder, we are always looking for short articles from the ice core community for publishing in In-Depth. Please contact us at nicl.smo@unh.edu if you would like to contribute an article.