A common future amidst unknowns: an <i>NSR</i> forum on polar science

The final frontiers on our planet challenge humans' survival as much as our ambition. The Arctic and Antarctic areas together exert enormous influence on the climate of the whole planet, as they contain 87% of its fresh water, 90% of its ice and snow, 90% of its permafrost and 69% of its glaciers. However, our lack of understanding of changes in the polar regions, such as melting ice sheets, results in major uncertainties in our estimates and predictions with regard to rising sea levels and other effects of climate change. For example, as the Arctic region is warming up two to four times faster than the global average, Eurasia now experiences colder winters. As its mechanism is yet to be elucidated, forecasts of extreme weather events in China, which aim to avert severe damages, remain inadequate. In order to raise awareness of polar science, <i>National Science Review</i> invited Dr. Dake Chen of the Second Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) to organize a forum discussion with five Chinese experts to explore these crucial topics. <b>Jianfang Chen</b> () Professor, Second Institute of Oceanography, MNR <b>Ruibo Lei</b> () Professor, Polar Research Institute of China, MNR <b>Jiping Liu</b> () Professor, School of Atmospheric Science, Sun Yat-sen University <b>Qinghua Yang</b> () Professor, Sun Yat-sen University and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai) <b>Meng Zhou</b> () Professor, School of Oceanography, Shanghai Jiao Tong University <b>Dake Chen</b> () (Chair) Professor, The Second Institute of Oceanography, MNR and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai).