Permafrost and Glaciers: Perspectives for the Earth and Planetary Sciences

Dear Colleagues,

Permafrost and glaciers are the most important components of the cryosphere. Their mutual relationship has only recently become the subject of interdisciplinary research. The fact that most of the permafrost and glacial studies have been carried out separately is an obstacle to their conduct. Moreover, the progressive specialization of research in Earth sciences has led to increasing difficulties with the holistic view of the cryosphere in general. Additionally, the extremely important practical issues associated with so-called “climate change” mean that little attention is being paid to understanding the essence of the cryosphere’s components and their inter-relationship. Thus, there is a growing disparity between the results of empirical, environmentally oriented research and their more precise, universal, and interdisciplinary understanding. The purpose of this special issue is, therefore, not to present strictly the results of empirical studies conducted by the authors. It is to refine the synthetic opinions—based on the authors’ scientific experience—on how the relation between permafrost and glacier should be perceived in their view. Cross-cutting inferences, based on a wide-ranging perspective, would be particularly valuable. I would like to invite you especially to compare the mentioned elements of the Earth's cryosphere with the cryospheres of other celestial bodies of our solar system. I invite authors both at the beginning of their careers and with rich scientific experience to confront these opinions. The confrontation of opinions and scientific traditions of Russia and Western European countries and the USA seems particularly valuable because of the dominant scientific achievements in this field. Issues that may encourage authors to prepare original statements may be presented as follows:

1. Is the position of A. Washburn (USA) 1973 that "glaciers that have a temperature not reaching 0 ^oC are permafrost by definition" still valid?
2. Is the position of A. P. Shumskii (USSR) 1964 on the petrology of ice still important to us?
3. Is the relation between glacier and permafrost a material, geophysical, or other issue?
4. Is it possible to have permafrost under a glacier? Cryotic state vs. pressure melting point.
5. Snowball-earth: frozen or glaciated?
6. Extraterrestrial analogs: Europa icy-lithosphere and sea-ice of the Arctic ocean—how do we compare and understand each of these?
7. Any other relevant issue.

I believe that this unique and unprecedented opportunity to exchange opinions can provide inspiration to perceive cryospheric research in a broader, more universal context and to point out new horizons for this research. Each scientifically justified position is important and worth presenting; however, the subject of our special issue is not likely to require methodological work. Because we expect different, perhaps even mutually exclusive opinions, the final goal of this publication may be to organize a conference where the divergent positions will be discussed. I am expecting works no longer than the standard 10 double-spaced A4 pages.

Dr. Wojciech Dobinski
Prof. Christof Kneisel
Guest Editors

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