Plenary 5: The Cryosphere in Retreat

The cryosphere is a fundamental element of the global climate system that influences large-scale fluxes of energy, moisture and gases. The plenary will be in three parts plus a discussion period. The first part will summarize our current knowledge of the changes observed in the cryosphere as determined by the different systems used to monitor its physical parameters. The second part will address issues related to forecasting expected changes in the next century. The third part will address questions related to adaptation and mitigation of the negative impacts of a retreating cryosphere.