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Łepkowska E., Hołda-Michalska A., Zagórski P. (eds.), 2023: Polar Symposium-bis. Book of Abstracts. Sopot-Warszawa-Sosnowiec-Lublin. The Polar Symposium is a cyclical, biennial scientific meeting dedicated to polar issues. For years, it has served as a natural platform for exchanging experiences, fostering integration, and facilitating discussions among Polish and international researchers of polar regions representing various scientific disciplines. The Symposium is supported by the Committee on Polar Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences, the Polish Polar Consortium, and the Polar Club of the Polish Geographical Society. In the year 2023, the honour of organizing the 39th Polar Symposium was bestowed upon the Institute of Oceanology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Sopot. During the plenary session, which is part of the “Decade of the Ocean” celebrations and themed Polar Inspirations - Seas and Oceans, we will listen to 12 invited presentations on 18th May. Additionally, we will also celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the Institute of Oceanology of the Polish Academy of Sciences. On the following day, 19th May, as part of the Polar Symposium-bis organized by the Polish Polar Consortium, the Committee on Polar Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences, and the Polar Club of the Polish Geographical Society, three thematic sessions will take place: (1) Antarctic and Arctic Ecology /Polish Polar Consortium/ (2) Tipping points of the Arctic and Antarctic system /Polar Club of the Polish Geological Society/ (3) 100 years after A.B.Dobrowolski's Natural History of Ice /The Committee on Polar Research PAS/ During the Polar Symposium-bis, a total of 24 presentations and 33 scientific posters will be showcased, which will undoubtedly serve as a basis for lively discussions and the exchange of ideas. During the Polar Symposium-bis, 24 presentations and 33 scientific posters will be showcased, undoubtedly serving as a basis for fruitful discussions and exchanging ideas. We are pleased to present you with the “Book of Abstracts” of the Polar Symposium-bis, containing summaries of the talks and posters. Polar Symposium-bis Scientific and Organizing Committee: Robert Bialik Wojciech Dobiński Aleksandra Hołda-Michalska Dariusz Ignatiuk Elżbieta Łepkowska Mateusz Moskalik Mateusz Strzelecki Piotr Zagórski

The study focuses on the changes in the regime of the four High Arctic catchments in the last 40 years taking into account different percentages of glacial coverage. The selected catchments include Breelva, Ariebekken, Bratteggbekken and Fuglebekken with glacial coverage of 61%, 11.8%, 5.9% and 0% respectively.The flow time series in the selected catchments were simulated using a glacio-hydrological model calibrated and validated based on the available archival hydro-meteorological data.In the second step, the reconstructed flows from the period 1979-2020 were filtered and smoothed. This allowed for delineation of the seasonal pattern by filtering out small scale variability. The changes in flow regime were assessed with trend analysis for each calendar day.Similar trends of change were detected in all studied catchments due to similar locations in the SW Spitsbergen and climatic conditions. These changes include the earlier onset of snowmelt driven floods, large increases in autumn flows, prolongation of the hydrologically active season (starts earlier and lasts longer), decrease in flows in the latter half of June and the early part of August (except for the Breelva catchment). These changes resulted in the changes of flood regime from snowmelt-dominated to the bi-modal with peaks in both July/August and September.A comparison of the changes between the four catchments indicated differences in the magnitude of hydrological response depending on the percentage of glacial coverage in the catchments. The larger the glacierized area is, the larger the changes in the flow regime. The estimated changes are larger than observed in lower latitudes due to larger changes in climatic conditions.

This study investigates the response of four High Arctic catchments with differing proportions of glacierization to changing climatic conditions. The study area located in SW Spitsbergen, has experienced a warming of 4.5 °C in the last 40 years along with a large increase in autumn rainfall. The changes in flow regime were determined based on available hydro-meteorological data and simulations of a semi-distributed rainfall-runoff model, which allowed reconstruction of streamflow in the period 1979-2020 and trend analyses for each calendar day. Similar trends of change were detected in all studied catchments. These include earlier onset of snowmelt driven floods (by two weeks over the period of analysis), large increases in autumn flows, prolongation of the hydrologically active season (starts earlier and lasts longer), decrease in flows in the latter half of June and the early part of August (except for the Breelva catchment). As a result of increases in autumn precipitation, the flood regime in these catchments has changed from snowmelt-dominated to the bi-modal with peaks in both July/August and September. The results also indicate differences in the magnitude of hydrological response depending on the percentage of glacial coverage in the catchments. The larger the glacierized area is, the larger the changes in the flow regime. The hydrological regime of SW Spitsbergen catchments has undergone dramatic changes over the last four decades. Such a shift in hydro-climatic conditions is larger than that observed in lower latitudes and has significant environmental implications.

The aluminium (Al) cycle in glacierised basins has not received a great deal of attention in studies of biogeochemical cycles. As Al may be toxic for biota, it is important to investigate the processes leading to its release into the environment. It has not yet been ascertained whether filterable Al (passing through a pore size of 0.45 μm) is incorporated into biogeochemical cycles in glacierised basins. Our study aims to determine the relationship between the processes bringing filterable Al and glacier‐derived filterable nutrients (particularly Fe and Si) into glacierised basins. We investigated the Werenskioldbreen basin (44.1 km², 60% glacierised) situated in SW Spitsbergen, Svalbard. In 2011, we collected meltwater from a subglacial portal at the glacier front and at a downstream hydrometric station throughout the ablation season. The Al concentration, unchanged between the subglacial system and proglacial zone, reveals that aluminosilicate weathering is a dominant source of filterable Al under subglacial conditions. By examining the Al:Fe ratio compared with pH and the sulphate mass fraction index, we found that the proton source for subglacial aluminosilicate weathering is mainly associated with sulphide oxidation and, to a lesser degree, with hydrolysis and carbonation. In subglacial outflows and in the glacial river, Al and Fe are primarily in the forms of Al(OH)₄‐ and Fe(OH)₃. The annual filterable Al yield (2.7 mmol m‐²) was of a magnitude similar to that of nutrients such as filterable Fe (3.0 mmol m‐²) and lower than that of dissolved Si (18.5 mmol m‐²). Our results show that filterable Al concentrations in meltwater are significantly correlated to filterable and dissolved glacier‐derived nutrients (Fe and Si, respectively) concentrations in glaciers worldwide. We conclude that a potential bioavailable Al pool derived from glacierised basins may be incorporated in biogeochemical cycles, as it is strongly related to the concentrations and yields of glacier‐derived nutrients.

A unique data set of suspended sediment transport from the Breelva, which drains the Werenskioldbreen (Southwestern Spitsbergen), is reported for the period 2007&ndash, 2012. This basin is thoroughly described hydrologically, glaciologically, and chemically. However, until now there was a lack of full recognition of mechanical denudation. This study extends the information on quantitative suspended sediment load (SSL), amounting to 37.30&ndash, 130.94 kt per year, and also underlines the importance of its modification by high discharge events, triggered by intense snowmelt or heavy rainfall. The large floods during the hydrologically active season transported even 83% of the total SSL. The variability of the SSL is controlled by glacial storage and release mechanisms. Particularly interesting is the second half of the hydrologically active season when intense rainfall events plays a key role in shaping the sediment supply pattern. The main source of fine mineral matter is the basal moraine, drained by subglacial outflows. Their higher mobilization occurs when the hydrostatic pressure increases, often as a result of rainwater supply to the glacier system. An increasing precipitation trend for Hornsund fjord region determines a positive trend predicted for sediment flux.