Holdings

These collections are a national and international treasure documenting the history of science and exploration in cold regions. Included are materials from early expeditions to Alaska, the Alps, South and Central America, and Greenland, as well as historical records of the activities of the World Data Center and the National Snow and Ice Data Center. These materials include approximately 1,400 maps, 8,000 photographic prints, 1,400 glass plate negatives, 1,600 color slides, more than 7,000 ice charts, and 38 cubic feet of manuscript materials. In addition, NSIDC holds 144 cubic feet of film and 34 cubic feet of the records of the history of NSIDC.. All of these materials, garnered since the late 1800s, document the birth of glaciology as a field of study, the history of the WDC for Glaciology, Boulder, and more recently the history of the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Below are links to some of these collections.

The Arctic Ice Dynamics Joint Experiment (AIDJEX)

http://nsidc.org/data/aidjex/

The AIDJEX program was the first major western sea ice experiment constructed specifically to answer emerging questions about how sea ice moves and changes in response to the influence of ocean and atmosphere. A pilot study in 1972 was followed by the AIDJEX field program in 1975 and 1976.

Held within the NSIDC Analog Archives collection are eighty-two 8" x 10" black and white and color photographs taken during the 1972 AIDJEX Pilot Study. The photographs were taken by Tom Marlar of CRREL, and also Pat Martin, who took aerial photographs of the camp on the ice. These images capture the participants, their research facilities, including the Convair 990 aircraft, and some of the activities performed during the pilot study.

Greenland Snow Pit and Core Stratigraphy

http://nsidc.org/data/arcss123.html

Carl S. Benson's Greenland snow accumulation study field notebooks and analyses of snow accumulation, temperature, ice sheet facies and snow densification are available on 74 microfiche or as hard copy for on-site use by appointment. The data set includes a summary of all sampling stations, summary matrix of data collected at each station; accumulation data adjusted for Fall 1954 and Fall 1955 reference horizons; average accumulation for all stations; integrated ram hardness (snow density); descriptive stratigraphy, pit profile temperature and density; and pit and core temperature, density, ram hardness and stratigraphy.

Glacier Photograph Collection

http://nsidc.org/data/glacier_photo/

The Glacier Photograph Collection is an online, searchable collection of photographs, mostly in the Rocky Mountains, the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and Greenland. Photographs were taken from the air and ground. The dates of the photographs range from the 1800s to the present day. These photographs constitute an important historical record, as well as a data collection of interest to those studying the response of glaciers to climate change.

The Dehn Collection of Arctic Sea Ice Charts, 1953-1986

http://nsidc.org/data/g01111.html

A collection of charts depicting ice conditions in the seas off Alaska and western Canada coasts. Ice edge position and some ice concentration and other information are included, though the notations on the charts are often sparse and discontinuous in space and time, especially for older charts in the series. These charts, more that 6,800 in number, were donated to NSIDC by the estate of William H. Dehn.

Good Days on the Trail, 1938-1942: Film Footage of the Rocky Mountains, Colorado

http://nsidc.org/data/g02175.html

This film documents student hiking trips conducted by the University of Colorado at Boulder in the Rocky Mountains, Colorado, USA during the summers of 1938-1942. The hikes took place in various locations west of Boulder, including Rocky Mountain National Park, Indian Peaks Wilderness, and Roosevelt National Forest. The film contains rare historical footage of the Rocky Mountains, including Arapaho Glacier and Fair Glacier.

Cold Land Processes Field Experiment (CLPX)

http://nsidc.org/data/clpx/intro.html

The NASA Cold Land Processes Field Experiment (CLPX) was a multi-sensor, multi-scale field program of nested study areas in Colorado and Wyoming, USA, designed to extend the current local-scale understanding of water fluxes, storage, and transformations to regional and global scales.

Glaciological Data Series

http://nsidc.org/pubs/gd/

The Glaciological Data series is published by NSIDC on an irregular basis. Issues usually focus on a single topic and include specialized bibliographies, inventories and survey reports, and workshop proceedings relating to snow and ice research, as well as invited or contributed articles on data sets. Contributions are edited, but not refereed or copyrighted.

Great Lakes Aerial Photos of Ice Conditions

http://nsidc.org/data/g00494.html

The collection consists of approximately 50,000 high-quality negatives and transparencies showing ice cover impact on navigation or hydroelectric operation from 1963 to 1973. Coverage is not systematic or complete. Indexing has not been undertaken, but latitude and longitude of flight line begin and end points are logged. Photos from many flights have been made into photomosaics that can be used on-site as a gross index to the 9-inch roll negatives. Photographic flights were carried out by a U.S. Air Force photomapping wing, using flight lines selected by NOAA Lake Survey Center (now Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory).