This volume represents the Proceedings of the ‘Smithsonian at the Poles Symposium,’ held at the Smithsonian Institution on 3–4 May 2007, and is published as a contribution to the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007–2008. The symposium was a joint initiative of the International Council for Science (ICSU) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). An objective of the symposium was to increase understanding of how polar regions affect the habitability of our planet.

Multidisciplinary research from the IPY already provides new evidence of the widespread effects of global warming in the polar regions. Snow and ice are declining in both, affecting human livelihoods as well as local plant and animal life in the Arctic, as well as global ocean and atmospheric circulation and sea level. The chapters in this volume address many of those concerns and more, as our planet experiences changes that will eventually affect humans as well as its fauna and flora.

The 31 chapters by 79 authors represent research associated with Smithsonian initiatives, although the numerous co-authors from other affiliations show wide involvement on a variety of subjects. The chapters are grouped into six themes – IPY histories and legacies; cultural studies; systematics and biology of polar organisms; methods and techniques of under-ice research; environmental change and polar marine ecosystems; and polar astronomy: observational cosmology. Multi-authored chapters are particularly prominent in the latter 4 groups, where affiliations range from a variety of U.S. and non-U.S. academic institutions and research centres, the Smithsonian Institution, and native populations in Greenland and Nunavut. Along with authors’ names commonly seen in the literature associated with products of their research (Gerald Kooyman, Scripps, diving physiology of emperor penguins and Weddell seals, as only one example), it is gratifying to see native names as co-authors as well, indicating their involvement in the research. Examples are seen in a chapter on narwhal dentition, the 15 authors have affiliations from the Smithsonian as well as names of elders and hunters from Nunavut and Greenland.

Most of the illustrations and maps are in black and white, with some on glossy paper in colour to enhance the resolution and readability of the data. An 11 page index helps the reader locate significant topics in the various chapters. Smithsonian should be commended for making the book available at no cost, thus widening the audience for a significant series of subjects related to the IPY.